Apple sued by Boston University for infringing semiconductor patent

Apple Inc is facing another patent infringement lawsuit, this time not from any of its rivals, but from Boston University, which is seeking to ban the richest technology company from selling some of its products for allegedly infringing of a semiconductor patent invented by one of its professor.

Boston University is asking the US District Court of Massachusetts to ban the sales of the iPhone 5, iPad, and MacBook Air, saying that theses products infringe on a patent filed by its computer engineering professor Theodore Moustakas and assigned to the trustees of Boston University in November 1997.

The 139-year old university says that Moustakas had been granted US patent no 5,686,738, which covers a method of "highly insulating monocrystalline gallium nitride thin films," according to Apple Insider.

The university alleges that some of Apple devices generating blue laser using gallium nitride thin film semiconductor device, as described in the patent, is an infringement.

The suit alleges that Apple "has infringed, and continues to infringe, one or more claims of the '738 patent."

Boston University is seeking a part of all the profits Apple has made on these devices, plus interest, which industry experts says could amount to $75 million.

Apple is yet to comment on the lawsuit.

Apple is not the first company Boston University has targeted over patent infringement lawsuits. Amazon, Samsung and some other small companies have earlier borne the brunt of the university's patent protection.

Apple and Samsung, who together hold around half of the $390 billion global smartphone market share, are fighting patent battles in court in around 10 countries.