Apple would close two stores in Texas to avoid patent trolls

Apple plans to close its two stores in East Texas to avoid prosecution of patents, according to a new report from MacRumeurs.

As MacRumeurs note, the Eastern District of Texas is famous for its patent cases (a document from SMU Dedman School of Law supports this claim) and, according to US law, lawsuits can be brought in places where the defendant "has a place of. "By closing its two stores in the district, Apple hopes to protect itself from these lawsuits.

The Apple Willow Bend store in Plano and the Apple Stonebriar store in Frisco are scheduled to close on April 12. Apple plans to open a new store in the Galleria Dallas shopping center just outside the eastern boundary of the district to continue to be present in the area.

It's apparently a radical gesture on the part of Apple to protect itself from lawsuits, but since these lawsuits can cost the company more than half a billion dollars, it's easy to see why Apple would be willing to do everything in its power to avoid them. .