Apple
immediately countersued
Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO, not reputed as particularly gracious, chimed:
"Creative is very fortunate to have been granted this early patent. This
settlement resolves all of our differences with Creative, including the five
lawsuits currently pending between the companies, and removes the uncertainty
and distraction of prolonged litigation."
$100 million is a pittance compared to the $1.5 billion that Apple reaped
from iPod sales in just this past quarter, Jobs observed.
Sim Wong Hoo, chairman and CEO of Creative, considered the settlement
amicable, feeling that it opened up "significant new opportunities" for his
company. As part of the agreement, Creative may join Apple's "Made for iPod"
program as an authorized seller of iPod accessories. Creative, which has its own
Zen portable music player, had its market share lunch ate by Apple's iPod.
The $100 million will be made as a one-time licensing payment, and a portion
is reputedly subject to rebate if Creative manages to license its patents to MP3
player makers; details on how that would work were fuzzy.
Apple
Computer rather graciously ended its dispute with Creative Technology,
apparently perceiving merit in Creative's iPod-related patents; gracious to the
tune of $100 million.