Southern California's brain trust Caltech is taking global electronics giant Samsung to court over patent claims. Caltech asserts that Samsung infringed upon five of its data transmission patents when it used the tech for its WiFi chips that are found in Galaxy smartphones, tablets, and watches, as well as in Samsung TVs and refrigerators. The initial complaint was filed in a Texas federal court. 

• "By reason of Samsung’s infringement, Caltech has suffered substantial damages," said CalTech in the complaint, notes The Street. "Caltech is entitled to recover the damages sustained as a result of Samsung’s wrongful acts in an amount subject to proof at trial."

Prior Cases

Caltech sued Apple and chipmaker Broadcom for similar patent infringements in 2016. A jury awarded the university a combined $1.1 billion in royalties from the two tech giants in June 2020, reports Reuters. However, both companies have appealed the decision, which has in turn paused a separate lawsuit Caltech filed against Microsoft for patent infringement. 

The Verdict

This seems like a case of David (Caltech) vs multiple Goliaths, and yet, Caltech seems to have a strong enough case that a federal jury already awarded it over $1 billion.