LaserDynamics, Inc. v. Quanta Computer, Inc.
United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
694 F.3d 51 (2012)
- Written by Nicole Gray , JD
Facts
LaserDynamics, Inc. (LaserDynamics) (plaintiff) held a patent for a method that enabled optical disc drives to automatically determine which type of optical disc they were reading. LaserDynamics licensed the technology to makers of components for laptop computers. Component makers then made patented components for optical disc drives and sold them to computer manufacturers at a rate nonindicative of their investments in the patented technology. Quanta Computer, Inc. (QCI) (defendant) assembled and sold laptops, having multiple patented and nonpatented components, including optical disc drives with a component to practice LaserDynamics’s patented method. QCI did not manufacture or sell the patented components; instead, it purchased the components from its customers for computer assemblies. Accounting for the individual patented components was difficult because neither party sold the patented components. LaserDynamics sued QCI for infringement and was awarded damages based on the entire market value of QCI’s computer, following a jury trial. At the end of the trial, the district court granted QCI’s motion for a new trial on damages. LaserDynamics appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Reyna, J.)
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