IT giant Samsung may face having to abandon wireless charging technology in its devices after losing a patent lawsuit. After a long dispute with Mojo Mobility, which began in 2022, the court ruled in favor of the plaintiff. The verdict was announced on September 13, 2024.
According to the ruling, Samsung must pay a fine of $200 million for violating five patents related to wireless charging technology. If the fine is not paid, the company could be ordered to remove wireless charging from its future devices or develop an alternative technology that does not infringe the patents.
Possible consequences for Samsung
Among the most radical possible scenarios is the disabling of wireless charging on already released smartphones due to firmware updates. Such a move would cause significant changes in user device performance and likely negative feedback from consumers.
Samsung plans to appeal, but the case looks serious. A similar situation recently happened with Apple, which was forced to temporarily stop selling its smart watches due to a patent dispute with Masimo. This affected the functionality of the new Apple Watch models, where the blood oxygen level measurement still does not work.
What's next for Samsung?
Against the background of the news about the loss in court, there were rumors about a potential increase in the prices of future models of Samsung smartphones, in particular the Galaxy S24 FE. The company is also preparing the release of several budget models, such as the Galaxy A16, which can receive record support for Android updates, up to 6 years.
