Fintiv has filed a lawsuit against Apple, which accuses the tech company of illicitly acquiring mobile wallet technology leveraged to develop Apple Pay.
Following this announcement, the legal proceedings were initiated by Kasowitz on behalf of Fintiv, claiming that Apple was involved in a pattern of criminal activities, including the processes of wire fraud and misappropriation of trade secrets.
These actions were allegedly part of a larger scheme that aimed to appropriate Fintiv’s mobile wallet technology, which has been a factor in the success and revenue generation of Apple Pay. In addition, the lawsuit details that over a decade ago, Apple purportedly sought a business partnership with CorFire, Fintiv’s predecessor, which aimed to focus on the procedure of licensing their mobile wallet technology.
More information on Apple’s lawsuit
According to Reuters, during 2011 and 2012, Apple is said to have attended meetings with CorFire, receiving confidential information under NDAs with the intention of forming a licensing agreement. In a complaint made public recently, Fintiv mentioned that Apple Pay's key features were based on technology developed by CorFire, which Fintiv bought in 2014, and is currently leveraged in several iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, and MacBooks.
In addition, the firm also accuses Apple of developing an enterprise with banks and payment networks in order to leverage the contested technology in processing Apple Pay transactions, resulting in substantial annual earnings for the involved parties. The complaint alleged that the process of modifying Apple Pay for use on four separate categories of its devices enables the firm to repeat and compound its theft by knowingly utilising Fintiv’s stolen technology in products that are used around the world.
