settlement

Samsung won't talk settlement with Apple? Yeah, right

Samsung's insistence that it has no plans to negotiate a settlement with Apple may simply be a head fake in a long-running legal game between the two companies.

It's foolish to rule out the possibility of peace between the two given how far the fight's gone and how much is still left to sort out legally,say intellectual property and legal experts.

"When it's all said and done, they have so many litigations, in so many geographies, with billions of dollars at risk," says Richard Ehrlickman, the president and founder of patent brokerage firm … Read more

Samsung: We don't intend to negotiate with Apple

It appears Samsung Electronics won't be following in HTC's footsteps.

HTC on Saturday settled its long-running legal dispute with Apple, raising expectations that Samsung may do the same. But the Korean conglomerate's mobile chief, J.K. Shin, has told the Yonhap News Agency that the company will bank on a legal resolution instead of an out-of-court settlement.

Shin said he doesn't intend to negotiate at all with Apple, illustrating just how far apart the two companies are. While Apple scored a significant victory in the U.S., there are a number of legal clashes going on … Read more

Mozilla gets lucky, settles IRS audit for $1.5M

A nearly four-year tax audit of the Mozilla Foundation is finally over. And it looks like the foundation got off easy by handing over just $1.5 million to the U.S. government.

Mozilla Foundation Chair Mitchell Baker announced in a blog post today that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) closed its audit and agreed to settle with the company.

"I'm happy to note that we've settled the issues raised and the IRS recently closed the audit," she wrote. "We entered into a settlement, under which the Mozilla Foundation paid the IRS US $1.5 … Read more

E-book junkie? Amazon may have some money for you

If you've been a regular buyer of Kindle e-books for the last couple of years, Amazon has what might turn out to be a little good news for you.

The company has posted an FAQ about a credit that may become due to certain e-book buyers as a result of antitrust settlements reached in April between the Justice Department and the publishers Hachette, Harper Collins, and Simon & Schuster. (Amazon was not a party to the lawsuit in question, which involved allegations of price fixing between these publishers, two others, and Apple.)

If the settlement deals are approved by … Read more

Netflix and deaf-rights group settle suit over video captions

Netflix and the National Association for the Deaf (NAD) have come to an agreement about captions for the company's streaming videos: 100 percent must be captioned by 2014.

The agreement comes by way of a class action lawsuit filed by NAD in 2010 that alleged the streaming service was "failing to provide adequate closed captioning on 'Watch Instantly' streaming video programming," and therefore was in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

After back-and-forth between the lawyers -- and Netflix working to get the case thrown out -- the two sides finally settled this week.

"We … Read more

Facebook redoes privacy settlement, offers cash to users

Facebook is taking another shot at a "Sponsored Stories" settlement, agreeing to pay affected consumers and provide a simpler way to review all Sponsored Stories interactions.

The social-networking giant first tried to settle the case several months ago, but a judge rejected the settlement in August, saying he had "serious concerns" with the pact. In particular, the judge wondered how the parties determined the $20 million settlement amount to be paid out by the social network. The amount included $10 million in legal fees for the plaintiff attorneys.

Under the new agreement, filed Friday, Facebook has … Read more

Activision and No Doubt settle Band Hero lawsuit

The pop band No Doubt claimed that the video game Band Hero turned its front woman Gwen Stefani into a "virtual karaoke circus act." Now, that circus act may have sung its last song.

Activision, the maker of Band Hero, and No Doubt settled an ongoing lawsuit this week, according to the Associated Press. The settlement was agreed upon just weeks before a jury trial was set to begin.

The legal case began in 2009 when No Doubt charged that Activision didn't tell the pop musicians that gamers would be able to unlock the band's avatars … Read more

Rent-to-own firms settle computer spying charges

Eight companies accused of spying on consumers via rented computers have agreed to settle charges that they broke the law and engaged in unfair business practices, the Federal Trade Commission announced.

The rent-to-own companies are accused of using a program called "Detective Mode" that pinpointed the whereabouts of computers via geolocation tracking software if consumers were late on payments.

The software also was used to log key strokes, capture screen shots and take photos with the webcam, and it displayed a fake software registration screen ostensibly from Microsoft or Yahoo that tricked customers into providing their personal contact … Read more

Low Latency No. 35: Back to the drawing board

Low Latency is a weekly comic on CNET's Crave blog written by CNET editor and podcast host Jeff Bakalar and illustrated by Blake Stevenson. Be sure to check Crave every Thursday at 8 a.m. PT for new panels! Want more? Here's every Low Latency comic so far.… Read more

Judge urges Apple, Samsung CEOs to talk settlement

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- U.S. District Court Judge Lucy Koh today once again urged Apple and Samsung's chief executives to meet in hopes of settling the case.

"If you can have your CEOs have one last conversation, I'd appreciate it," Koh told legal counsel for both companies in court here today.

Apple and Samsung had previously met ahead of the trial to discuss settlements, court-mandated talks that did not lead to a resolution.

The plea came on the heels of Koh telling both companies that they should narrow their claims. Apple, for instance, is currently … Read more