The markets advanced during the midday with the Dow rising 19 points to 19,235. Nasdaq gained 21 points to 5,330.
The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Samsung by invalidating an appeals court ruling that ordered Samsung to pay Apple $399 million for patent infringement. The justices said that the patent violator does not have to pay the patent holder, Apple in this case, the entire amount of the profits that were made from the sale of stolen designs. The payment should only cover the patented components rather than the entire product.
Amazon has been sued by several companies that use the "As Seen on TV" marketing slogan. Snuggle blanket maker Allstar Marketing, Copper Fit compression sleeve maker Ideavillage Products and Magic Tracks toy racetracks maker Ontel Products have accused Amazon of copyright infringement for selling counterfeit products on its website. The plaintiffs are seeking million of dollars in lost profits and punitive damages.
The European Commission has approved Microsoft's proposed $26 billion acquisition of LinkedIn. Concerns about competition had been raised but Microsoft agreed to allow rival social and professional networks access to Microsoft Office. The acquisition has already been approved in the United States, Brazil, Canada and South Africa.
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of nearly 7 to 3 on the NYSE and by 2 to 1 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 index rose 5 points to 2,210. Bitcoin gained $4 to $756.
