There would've been smiles on the faces of corporate ladder of Apple when they were originally victorious with their patent lawsuit against Samsung but now the fun is dissolving. Judge Lucy Koh has ordered that the $1.05 billion awarded to Apple six months ago get cut by a hefty $450,514,650. Not chump change by standards.

There are now some questions that would like to be asked about Samsung's per-product damages to 14 of their devices. Judge Koh has now said there's enough going on to require a new trial. This could go two ways, with Samsung proving victorious and getting their damages cut, or removed - the flip side is that Apple may well lose the $450 million, but if victorious for a second time, could be awarded much more on top of their original $1.05 billion.

Interesting times once more, for both companies and consumers.