Apple Inc. v. Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. et al

Filing 943

Declaration of Brett Arnold in Support of #930 Administrative Motion to File Under Seal Samsung's Motion for Summary Judgment filed bySamsung Electronics America, Inc., Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., Samsung Telecommunications America, LLC. (Attachments: #1 Ex. 4, #2 Ex. 6, #3 Ex. 7, #4 Ex. 8, #5 Ex. 9, #6 Ex. 13, #7 Ex. 16 (Part 1), #8 Ex. 16 (Part 2), #9 Ex. 16 (Part 3), #10 Ex. 16 (Part 4))(Related document(s) #930 ) (Maroulis, Victoria) (Filed on 5/18/2012)

EXHIBIT 9

Highly Confidential - Attorneys' Eyes Only

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RICARDO VILAS BOAS

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HIGHLY CONFIDENTIAL - ATTORNEYS' EYES ONLY

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IN THE UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON D.C

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Investigation No. 337-TA-796

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In the Matter of Certain

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Electronic Digital Media

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Devices and Components Thereof

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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

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DEPOSITION OF RICARDO VILAS BOAS
Friday 16 March 2012
At:

2:00 pm

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from that date alone.

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long to notice this deposition, Samsung can't comply

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with Judge Pender's ground rule within the discovery

5

period.

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Vilas' deposition notice on Apple and Mr. Lucas is

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April 3, 2012.

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if adequate notice had been given, in compliance with

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Judge Pender's ground rules, would be out of time.

Because Samsung has waited so

Fifteen business days from service of Mr.

Therefore, Mr. Vilas Boas' deposition,

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Therefore, while Apple is represented at this

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deposition there has been no adequate time on behalf

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of Apple to prepare for this deposition.

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familiar with the case was available at such short

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notice to attend, and that is to the clear prejudice

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of Apple.

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taking place at all and reserves its rights

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accordingly.

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No attorney

Apple therefore objects to this deposition

MR. ZELLER:

I am sure, as you are aware, Samsung

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disagrees with that, and also believes any objection

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at this point has now been waived to the notice.

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I will note that this is the first time that it has

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been stated by Apple that there was unavailability by

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its counsel for this deposition and, in fact,

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previously it was quite clear from the written

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correspondence that Apple in fact did have people
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available for this, but I am not going to obviously

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use up the witness' time at this juncture, since I

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think both parties have made their positions clear on

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this.

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MR. OWENS:

I would just like to confirm that by

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attendance Apple does not waive its objection to this

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deposition taking place.

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MR. ZELLER:

Good afternoon.

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A

Good afternoon.

11

Q

If you can please tell us your full name

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for the record.

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A

My full name, Ricardo Vilas Boas.

14

Q

Where do you currently reside?

15

A

I reside in Queen's Park, London.

16

Q

How long have you lived here in London?

17

A

Approximately four years.

18

Q

Are you currently employed?

19

A

No, I am freelancing at the moment.

20

Q

And you are freelancing as what?

21

A

As an industrial designer.

22

Q

Have you worked previously in the area

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of industrial design?

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A

Yes, I have.

25

Q

Maybe if we can start with your
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educational background.

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briefly what your educational background is?

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A

If you can please tell me

I took a BA, kind of four year degree,

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in Portugal in product design.

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as an industrial designer in Portugal.

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moved to London and started my Masters degree in

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industrial design with Central St Martins, which I

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finished in 2010.

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In 2008 I

After that I had other work for Tom

Dixon as an industrial designer as well.

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12

Then I did some work

Q

You mentioned that you received a BA

degree in industrial design?

13

A

Yes.

14

Q

What year was that?

15

A

I finished in 2004.

16

Q

What institution or school did you

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obtain that from?

18

A

It is ESAD, which is Escola Superior De

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Arte E Design.

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is located in Matosinhos, which is in the region of

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Porto.

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23

Q

It is normally known by ESAD, and it

I think you said that you got a degree

there in 2004?

24

A

Yes.

25

Q

When did you start?
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A

I started in -- sorry, I think because I

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had -- I started in 1999 or 2000, because I did a year

4

of architecture as well before, and then decided to

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change.

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think it was 99.

7
8

I can't recall the exact starting date.

Q

I

Then you mentioned that you started

working on your Masters in 2008?

9

A

Yes.

10

Q

And that was a Masters in industrial

11

design that you obtained?

12

A

Yes.

13

Q

And then please tell us, generally

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speaking, what did you do between the time you

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obtained your BA and the time you started working on

16

your Masters?

17

A

I worked for a consultancy in Portugal

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for six months.

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and interior designer.

20

Portugese motorbike company, helping to develop a

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motorbike that is now on the market, and components.

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I started kind of a small workshop company

After that I worked as an industrial
After that I worked for a

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of furniture design with a friend, doing bespoke

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furniture for family and friends.

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started my -- I decided to move to London and started
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my MA.

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4

Q

I think you mentioned that there was one

organization or company you worked for that was Dixon?

5

A

Tom Dixon, yes.

I finished my

6

internship, December 2011.

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lights and interior design, furniture design.

8

It is lighting, it does

Q

Were you doing design work for that

10

A

Yes.

11

Q

Let's please mark as Exhibit 1 a two

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company?

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page document bearing Bates numbers SAMNDCA00326381

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through 382.

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15

(Exhibit 1 marked for identification)
If you can please take a look at Exhibit 1

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and let us know if this is something that you have

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seen before.

18

A

Yes, it is.

19

Q

What do you recognize Exhibit 1 as?

20

A

These are two boards from a competition

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about a mobile phone that I designed in 2004.
Q

You mentioned from a competition.

What

competition are you referring to?
A

Yes, it was while I was doing my BA, the

school entered with other schools of design in
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Portugal entered a Nokia competition.

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the fourth generation mobile phone, so what would the

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mobile phone of the future be.

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6

Q

The brief was

This was a company that was sponsored by

Nokia in some way?

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A

Yes.

8

Q

What was your understanding in that

10

A

Sorry?

11

Q

Was it your understanding that it was

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12

regard?

sponsored by Nokia?

13

A

Yes, it was sponsored by Nokia, yes.

14

Q

If I understood you correctly, Exhibit 1

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are the boards that you submitted in connection with

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that competition?

17

A

Yes, they are.

18

Q

In what year did you actually enter

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these boards in the Nokia design contest or

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competition?

21

A

2004, beginning of 2004.

22

Q

And then was there some kind of award or

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recognition that you received in the competition?

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A

Yes, I placed second place.

25

Q

And then focusing your attention on
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these boards that are marked as Exhibit 1, were these

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made publicly available in some way back in that time

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period?

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6

A
internet, yes.

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8

They were published on a website on the

Q

Who was it that sponsored or ran that

A

I believe it was Nokia, so it was as far

website?

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10

as I can recall, it had a link on Nokia Portugal

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website that would take you to this website or you

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could access it just by browsing the web and

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searching.

14

Q

And then were the images that are shown

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here in Exhibit 1 actually displayed on that Nokia

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website?

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A

Yes, the website had -- so the people

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that got the prize of first, second, third position,

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plus a few other designs that they chose to display on

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the websites with the names, so I believe you could

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click on the names and access -- after you click on

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the names you could see the boards each person applied

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to the competition.

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25

Q

Did you yourself actually see the boards

that we have marked as Exhibit 1 on the Nokia website
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back in the 2004 timeframe?

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A

Yes, I did.

4

Q

And where were you when you accessed the

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Nokia website back in that time period, 2004?

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A

In 2004, I was in Portugal.

7

Q

And then were there times subsequent to

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2004 as well when you accessed the Nokia website, and

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I am saying you personally, and saw these boards that

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we have marked as Exhibit 1 displayed on the Nokia

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website?

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MR. OWENS:

13

MR. ZELLER:

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A

Objection, leading question.
You can go ahead.

I remember showing it to a colleague of

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mine in 2010, a colleague from the Masters degree, I

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remember showing the entries of the website.

17

Q

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accessed the website?

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A

At my house in London.

20

Q

Were there time periods between first in

Where were you located in 2010 when you

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2004 and then as recently as 2010 where you saw the

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website as well with your boards?

23

A

I can't completely recall I am afraid.

24

Q

What I would like to do is ask you about

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some of the features or aspects of the electronic
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device design that you came up with back in 2004.

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the overall shape of that device rectangular?

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A

Was

Yes.

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MR. OWENS:

6

MR. ZELLER:

7

A

8

edges, simple design.

9

Q

10

Objection, leading.
What shape would you describe it as?

Yes, it was rectangular with rounded

Do these boards show what the profile of

the design was?

11

A

Yes, on the second page you can see on

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the bottom right corner there is profile view of the

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mobile phone, and a front view as well.

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15
16
17
18

Q

How would you describe that profile

A

It is a thin profile with flat surface

shape?

front and back.
Q

With respect to this design that you had

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created and was published back in 2004, were there any

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physical buttons or keys on the front surface?

21

A

No, there were not.

22

Q

Was the display screen there on the

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front of the device symmetrically placed?

24

A

Yes.

25

Q

Focusing your attention on the front
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surface of the electronic device design that you came

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up with back in 2004, and was published in 2004, was

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that a flat, continuous and smooth surface?

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A

Yes.

6

Q

Was it a surface that was there on the

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front that was covered by clear glass that ran from

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edge to edge?

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10
11

A

Yes, it was for touch screens, so it had

to have a glass cover.
Q

Are there particular images shown here

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in Exhibit 1 that reflect the fact that the front face

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of the device was entirely flat?

14

A

I think on the second page, again the

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side view, you can see that there is no curvature or

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anything, so it is quite flat.

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best point to explain.

18

Q

I think that is the

And in that side profile image that you

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have been referring to on the second page, that was

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something that was made available through that

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website, the Nokia website back in 2004?

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23
24
25

A

Yes, these exact two boards were shown,

were displayed on the website.
Q

Maybe I should try it this way.

Was one

of the colors that you had envisioned for your design
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RICARDO VILAS BOAS
back in that time period of 2004 black?
MR. OWENS:

4

A

Objection, leading.

The idea was that the mobile phone would

5

come in a black color, so that would be when you

6

turned off the mobile phone out of the box would be in

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a black color, and then you could customize it to have

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different colors, so it would emit different colors if

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you wished to, but the main color of the display would

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be black.

11

Q

What was the color of this electronic

12

device design that you came up with as its default

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color?

14

A

Black.

15

Q

And when this electronic device was

16
17

turned off, was it black and reflective in appearance?
MR. OWENS:

Objection, leading.

18

A

Yes, it was.

19

Q

Directing your attention to Exhibit 1,

20

there appear in these images to be different

21

configurations of buttons on the front surface?

22

A

They are not exactly buttons, as it had

23

no physical buttons, so it is just -- so everything

24

was touch screen and you could customize it so the

25

image would look as you would like it to look.
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Q

So the buttons reflected here in Exhibit

1 were touch screen buttons?

4

A

Touch screen, yes, not physical buttons.

5

Q

Was there any kind of relationship

6

between the fact that the interface was to be through

7

a touch screen display and the fact that it didn't

8

have any physical keys on the front face?

9

A

I mean, for you to -- for better

10

interaction between the user and the touch screen, I

11

decided to go for simple design, quite flat surface,

12

so everything is easy to access.

13

as you can see here, I envisioned that you would be

14

able to see movies or films, things like that.

15

that would need again a very simple design so you

16

could see a movie as a full screen.

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that if you used any kind of buttons it would limit

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the ability to customize the mobile phone.

19

Q

Plus at that time,

So

Also the fact

When you have been using this word

20

"customize the mobile phone", are you talking about

21

customizing it through the display screen as the

22

interface?

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24
25

A

Yes.

MR. OWENS:
Q

Objection, leading.

You have also used in your answers the
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phrase "simple design"?

3

A

Yes.

4

Q

Was there some kind of advantage from

5

your perspective or some kind of relationship between

6

having a simple design and then having a display

7

screen re the interface for the phone?

8

MR. OWENS:

9

MR. ZELLER:

10
11

A

Objection, compound.
You can answer.

Eventually I lost -- is it possible to

repeat the question?

12

Q

I will just rephrase the question.

That

13

is quite all right.

14

time attorneys may object to the question but you

15

should still unless you are being instructed not to

16

answer, still go ahead and answer.

17

Just so it is clear, from time to

Was there any kind of relationship between

18

having this simple design that you are mentioning and

19

the fact that the interface for the phone was through

20

a display screen?

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22
23

A

I am not sure what you are asking but

Q

Did you see any kind of advantage in

...

24

having what you are referring to as a simple type

25

design and in having the display screen?
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MR. OWENS:

3

MR. ZELLER:

Objection, compound.
I think I got interrupted there.

4

What I am trying to find out, so the record is clear,

5

this objection went over my question.

6

What I am trying to find out is were there

7

any advantages to having a simple design, from your

8

perspective, in relationship to having the display

9

screen as the principal interface?

10

A

I mean, kind of yes, it would, it is,

11

you know, it is easier for the interaction itself, so

12

the more buttons you have, you are cluttering the

13

design.

14

easier interface and an easier way to physically

15

interact with the design or with the mobile phone.

16

that is why I chose the very simple design, neutral,

17

so people would interact with it.

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19
20

So making it simple will inevitably lead to

Q

So

Were there any kind of physical elements

at all on the front surface of your design?
A

There are just a microphone and then ear

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phone slots, but besides that there is a Nokia logo,

22

but that is not -- it is printed beneath the glass so

23

there is no physical -- how can I say -- the Nokia

24

logo, there is no physical relevance to it because it

25

is just a print behind.

Besides the microphone and

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the ear phone, there is no physical aspect, any other

3

physical, relevant thing on the front of the mobile

4

phone or the display.

5

Q

To make sure I understand, the Nokia

6

name or logo there on the front, shown here on your

7

design, was a virtual logo?

8

A

Yes.

9

Q

That is actually on the display screen?

10

A

Yes, that was the idea, you know,

11

something that would be emitted.

12

Q

Also, if I understood you correctly

13

then, the only physical elements on the front surface

14

were the microphone and speaker holes?

15

A

Yes.

16

Q

Did your design back from the 2004 time

17

period have a bezel?

18

A

Yes.

Again, on the side view, you can

19

see that it is rounded, so it is bezeled.

20

it on the top that it is slightly bezeled.

21

symmetrical all the way.

You can see
It is

22

Q

Symmetrical?

23

A

Throughout the site of the object.

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MR. ZELLER:

That is all I have for you.

25

you.

Thank

Why don't we take a minute and switch sides, if
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