Nokia Sues Apple Over iPhone Patent Infringements

Cell phone maker Nokia announced this morning that it has filed suit in U.S. Federal District Court in Delaware, alleging that ten (count 'em, ten!) aspects of iPhones shipped since 2007 (which would be, um, every iPhone ever) infringe on Nokia's intellectual property.

The patents in question, according to the company's press release, "relate to technologies fundamental to making devices which are compatible with one or more of the GSM, UMTS (3G WCDMA) and wireless LAN standards." In addition, they cover topics such as wireless data, speech coding, security, and encryption.

The details on this are a little sketchy at the moment, but basically Nokia is accusing Apple of not adequately compensating them for use of its tech standards.

"By refusing to agree appropriate terms for Nokia's intellectual property, Apple is attempting to get a free ride on the back of Nokia's innovation," said Ilkka Rahnasto, vice president for Legal & Intellectual Property at Nokia, in a statement.

Nokia itself has been accused of patent infringement in its use of 3G technology, but the company was cleared by the International Telecommunication Union back in August; Apple signed a licensing deal with InterDigital, the plaintiff in that case, in 2007.