The epic courtroom battle between Apple and Samsung regarding patents continues as the whole world awaits a decision. To put it quite simply, both sides are accusing each other of copying their technology. While Apple is crying foul over Samsung’s supposed lifting of user experience programming and product designs from the iPhone and iPad, Samsung has claimed that Apple is infringing on its patents related to wireless communications technology. As they prepare to go head to head in a jury trial starting Monday, July 30, 2012, in a federal district court in San Jose, California, let’s take a closer look at all what’s at stake in this case. The wins and losses so far:
Samsung’s Galaxy tablets, Tab 10.1 and Tab 7, infringe on Apple’s patents and designs Samsung’s Nexus range of devices infringe upon Apple’s patents related to actionable linking, slide-to-unlock, and touch screen word suggestion features Documents reveal that Samsung developed an overall plan to directly compete with Apple by copying its innovative designs and features, especially by going against the very successful touch-screen based interface of the iPhone Android has infringed on Apple’s patented “Quick Search Box” feature offering unified search capabilities
Apple has borrowed design concepts directly from its competitors while developing the iPhone, especially from Sony Apple’s internal documents have already admitted that there was nothing new about their creation; they were just successful in commercializing the design Apple would have been unable to sell a single iPhone without Samsung’s patented mobile telecommunications technology, something that they have been working on since as early as 1991 – almost 20 years before the iPhone was even launched Apple’s iPhone uses Samsung’s patented technology for flash memory, main memory, and application processor, without paying any credit to Samsung for the use of these technologies
Samsung won the early round in the Australian litigation against Apple and succeeded in overturning an injunction against the sale of its Galaxy Tab 10.1 in late 2011 In the US, however, Apple got the lead with the judge banning the sale of Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 as well as Nexus smartphone prior to a formal trial Samsung has won a legal ruling in the UK against Apple’s claims of patent infringement in the Galaxy Tab 10.1, with the judge stating that Samsung products are distinctive in comparison to that of Apple’s offerings A US court judge has concluded that Apple could lose significant market share due to Samsung’s Galaxy Nexus’s continued use of unified search capabilities, which has been patented by Apple
As the US trial is set to start soon, the one in Australia has already begun and is expected to go on for at least 3 months. Related litigation in courtrooms in UK and Germany are yet to start, but the US trial is expected to gather the maximum attention as the potential damages that either party could face are huge. While the companies have already begun appealing against the respective verdicts, the rest of the world continues to hang on to every word of this mega-trial and its ramifications not only on 2 of the largest technology companies in the world, but also its subsequent implications on other related technologies, especially Google’s Android.
