The Apple vs. Samsung battle, whilst a little tiresome at times, never fails to arouse interest within the technology sphere, and although Tim Cook’s Apple is slightly more mellow than the company might have been when headed by Steve Jobs, the Cupertino outfit shows no sign of letting up on its bitter rival, ramping up efforts to block sales of the Korean electronics giant’s Galaxy S III smartphone.
The device, which was one of the most anticipated Android releases of this calendar year, is accused of hiding Apple’s intellectual properties within, namely patents 5,946,647, 8,074,172, 8,046,721 and 8,086,604, which relate to design and general function of the device. The latter are said to have been hugely influential in Apple’s two most recent courtroom triumphs against Samsung, so the likelihood of them causing damage once again would appear to be strong.
The patents secure several different technologies said to have been violated. The fruit company claims "universal interface for retrieval of information in a computer system" in U.S patent number 8,086,604, whilst 5,946,647 relates to "performing an action on a structure in computer-generated data."
Meanwhile, patents 8,074,172 and 8,046,721 are specific to the unlocking of a mobile device "by performing gestures on an unlock image," along with the interface for recommending words – a necessity to both parties given how easily one can make a mistake on a small, touch-type keyboard.
With the situation between the two major companies already having been described as a "saga" and a "debacle," an end does not look nigh, despite the amount of legal fees both companies are continuing to incur. Lest we forget, Apple has in excess of 100 billion of cold, hard cash to play around with, and although Jobs himself once pledged to spend "every penny" of the substantial loot in order to "destroy Android," it seems his team – even headed by the placid Cook – is continuing its pursuit of Samsung in a manner the late co-founder would have been proud of.
There have been plenty of blocked sales of products during this continual battle, with both sides on the receiving end, but if the S III was to be barred barely a month into existence, it would certainly be the most significant to date.
Thoughts?
(via AppleInsider)
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