Apple and Immersion Reach Licensing Agreement After Legal Battle Over 3D Touch and Taptic Engine - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Apple and Immersion Reach Licensing Agreement After Legal Battle Over 3D Touch and Taptic Engine

by

Immersion, a company that develops and licenses haptic feedback technologies, today announced it has reached a settlement and licensing agreement with Apple. The terms of the deal are confidential.

apple watch taptic engine
Immersion describes itself as the leading innovator of haptic feedback systems, with more than 2,600 issued or pending patents. The company, headquartered in San Jose, California, says its technology has been adopted in more than three billion consumer electronic devices across several industries.

Immersion had filed a pair of lawsuits against Apple in early 2016, accusing the company of infringing on its patents with its haptic feedback technologies such as 3D Touch and the Taptic Engine on the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, and Force Touch on the first-generation Apple Watch and various MacBook trackpads.

Top Rated Comments

sw1tcher Avatar
108 months ago
Where are all the people who thought Immersion were patent trolls and/or had no case?

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/haptic-feedback-company-immersion-files-patent-infringement-lawsuit-against-apple.1955890/

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/immersion-files-second-haptic-feedback-lawsuit-against-apple.1971289/
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
108 months ago
Haha! You're probably right. I just find it backwards that they push for 3D Touch since its inception, include it in every phone since the 6s, and then pull it from the mainstream iPhone version. From a developer perspective, they're limiting their user base and there is less incentive to develop for 3D Touch.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
maflynn Avatar
108 months ago
Looks like Immersion hit the jackpot :eek:

I also wonder if apple will stop or diminish its use of Force touch now
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Apple Event Logo

Apple's Next Era Begins September 1

Thursday May 7, 2026 10:36 am PDT by
Apple recently announced that Tim Cook will be stepping down as CEO later this year, after 15 years of leading the company. Effective September 1, Apple's hardware engineering chief John Ternus will become the company's next CEO, while Cook will become executive chairman of Apple's board of directors. In his new role, Apple said Cook will assist with "certain aspects" of the company,...
Instagram Feature 2

PSA: Instagram Encrypted Messaging Ends on Friday, May 8

Tuesday May 5, 2026 8:24 am PDT by
Instagram will remove end-to-end encryption for direct messages between users from May 8, 2026. When the date comes around, Meta will potentially be able to see the contents of all messages between users on the social media platform. Encrypting messages has been an optional feature in Instagram since 2023, but in March of this year the social media platform quietly updated a help page to say ...
Apple Event Logo

Apple Just Released a New Accessory

Monday May 4, 2026 8:13 am PDT by
Apple today released a new Pride Edition Sport Loop for the Apple Watch. The band features a rainbow design with 11 colors of woven nylon yarns. The new Pride Edition Sport Loop is available to order now on Apple.com and in the Apple Store app in 40mm, 42mm, and 46mm sizes, and it will be available at Apple Store locations starting later this week. In the U.S., the band costs $49. There...