Korean consumer electronics giant is going on the
offensive now in its battle with Apple Inc.(NASDAQ:AAPL) over patents
ownership.
The Korean Times reported on Monday that the company
will sue Apple over its release of the iPhone 5 for infringing on its fourth
generation (4G), long term evolution (LTE) connectivity patents.
The publication quoted an industry source as saying,
"It’s true that Samsung Electronics has decided to take immediate legal
action against the Cupertino-based Apple. Countries in Europe and even the
United States ― Apple’s home-turf ― are our primary targets."
The Korea’s tech giant’s move came immediately after
industry sources confirmed Monday that the U.S. technology giant will unveil
the iPhone 5 featuring 4G LTE in Korea. The sources said that Apple has agreed
with local mobile carriers to release the LTE-enabled iPhone on the local
market for domestic telecommunications frequencies, the report said.
Last month a U.S. federal court awarded Apple more
than a billion dollars in damages in a patents dispute with Samsung, which was
found guilty of having infringed on Apple's phone patents and copying its
designs.
Apple is now seeking an injunction on banning some of
Samsung's devices from sale in the United States, the largest market for
smartphones.
With respect to the new iPhone to be launched this
week "Apple claimed the existing 3G-related patents are standard essential
patents (SEPs) according to our earlier commitment to the FRAND (fair,
reasonable, and non-discriminatory) terms. But the story is totally different
when you talk about LTE patents. These are new and highly-valued,’’ the report
said quoting a source.
The sources also added it’s unlikely Apple would
release the new iPhone using conventional third-generation (3G) networks.
No comments:
Post a Comment