Apple Seeks Ban on U.S. Sale of Eight Samsung Phones; Analyst Looks at Possible Effects on Google
Apple wants a ban on the sale of eight Samsung mobile phones within the U.S., the company said in a filing Monday in the U.S. District Court, San Jose. Apple is seeking a ban on seven phones in Samsung’s Galaxy line, plus Samsung’s Droid Charge, according to the filing, which followed a federal jury’s decision Friday that Samsung infringed on multiple Apple iPhone design and utility patents. The jury awarded Apple more than $1 billion in damages, though that award is not official until U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh renders a final decision on the case at a hearing Sept. 20. Samsung is likely to appeal (WID Aug. 28 p2).
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Now that Apple has determined what Samsung phones it wants banned, the focus turns to whether Samsung will have to immediately pull them off the market, or whether the company can continue selling them pending appeal, said tech analyst Jeff Kagan. “Either way this is just a short term problem for Samsung,” he said in an email Tuesday. “I am sure they are busy, behind the scenes, developing their next replacement technology and will update their phones as soon as possible.” Apple’s strategy in seeking a ban on the phones’ sale is unusual for this type of patent infringement case, Kagan said. “Traditionally, over the last couple decades, in similar cases, the winner charges a fee and the devices stay in the market,” he said. “But there is nothing traditional about this case. I think Apple has its eyes on Samsung’s jugular vein."
Google, the company behind the Android operating system that runs on Samsung phones, could provide Apple with a new target for a patent lawsuit since it “now owns Motorola and their patents,” Kagan said. Google said in a statement Monday that the verdict in the Samsung case did not affect the company, noting that most of the infringed patents “don’t relate to the core Android operating system, and several are being re-examined by the [U.S.] Patent Office. The mobile industry is moving fast and all players -- including newcomers -- are building upon ideas that have been around for decades. We work with our partners to give consumers innovative and affordable products, and we don’t want anything to limit that."
Apple’s victory over Samsung could also help Google in its dealings with the government, Guggenheim Partners analyst Paul Gallant said Monday. The Federal Trade Commission is in the midst of an antitrust investigation of the company (WID May 22 p2). “The Obama Administration has been active in promoting tech sector competition and has particularly focused on the risk that patent lawsuits present for mobile Internet competition,” Gallant said in market commentary. “So we think the prospect of Apple becoming even stronger in mobile -- along with Verizon’s recent effort to rein in the power of Android and Apple by pushing Windows Mobile -- should reduce the chance of the FTC deciding to impose new limits on Google’s Android business. A Google settlement with the FTC that did not limit Google’s relationship with handset makers would be a positive outcome for Google.”