Apple Continues Legal Attacks on Samsung

by Holly Shoemaker

Apple continues to pursue its legal attacks against Samsung. On Thursday, June 7, 2012, Apple filed a motion to block sales in the United States of the Galaxy S III. All major carriers have announced their release dates for Samsung's latest smartphone. Apple filed the motion as an addendum to its request for an injunction against the Galaxy Nexus.

Background Information

Apple has already taken steps to sue Samsung because of the Galaxy Nexus. Both Samsung smartphones run on Android 4.0, or Ice Cream Sandwich, the latest Android operating system. Apple says the two smartphones violate four of Apple’s patents. When Samsung released the Galaxy overseas, Apple analyzed the phone to help make its case against patent infringement.

Samsung’s Response

Samsung maintained that Apple’s latest motion comes too late. Apple filed the original court document in February. Samsung's lawyer also claimed that Apple wanted to block sales of the Galaxy S III prior to the launch because the company cannot "compete against the new features."

The addendum leaves out a feature, which I am surprised Apple did not mention. The Galaxy S III offers a new, voice-activation feature, which some say has similarities to Siri. Apple did not mentioned this in its addendum.

Next Steps

It will take some time for the court to decide if Apple may amend its original filing. In the meantime, an attorney for Apple said the company may seek a temporary restraining order to halt the sale of the Galaxy S III in the Unites States later this month.

The preliminary injunction against the Galaxy Nexus is scheduled for July 30, 2012. However, if Apple follows through with the restraining order, the trial date would likely get pushed back.