In a latest development in the Apple v. Samsung lawsuit over patent issues, industrial designer Peter Bressler told a San Jose court that customers often returned Galaxy Tablets to stores because they mistook it for Apple's iPad at the time of purchase.
While Apple has a well-grounded argument over the similarity in the aesthetics between the two tablets (and smartphones as well), some techies are claiming Bressler's testimony was taking it too far, and might work against Apple since it could be easily construed as "an insult, to the intelligence of the jury and those who frequent Best Buy stores," according to Frank Ling from The Examiner (www.examiner.com).
Ling points out, "Any customer wanting to purchase an iPad would have clearly seen, on the receipt, whether they bought the correct unit. In addition, the Samsung Galaxy Tab packaging clearly states in bold letters, Samsung Galaxy Tab, and not iPad...If anything, customers who purchased Galaxy Tabs from Best Buy, after using them for a period of time, returned the items because the functionality wasn't the same as an iPad," (www.examiner.com).
Last week, Apple claimed that the South Korean company deliberately leaked material that was dismissed from court evidence in order to get an upper hand in the case. Apple's lawyer William Lee accused the South Korean company of "bad faith litigation misconduct" (www.nj.com).
Lee filed a petition on behalf of the company, stating, "Apple requests that the court issue sanctions granting judgment that Apple's asserted phone-design patent claims are valid and infringed by Samsung," according to NJ.com.
In 2011, Apple filed suit against the South Korean Tech mogul Samsung Electronics Co. over patent issues and intellectual property rights regarding Apple's highly popular smartphone iPhone and computer tablet iPad. Apple claims that Samsung's smartphones and tablets are knock-offs of its designs.
iPhone and iPad designer Christopher Stringer told a court in San Francisco, "We've been ripped off; it's plain to see...its offensive."
Samsung's lawyer Charles Verhoeven dismissed accusations telling jurors, "Everyone is out there with that basic form factor...There is nothing wrong with looking at what your competitors do and being inspired by them," as reported by Time Magazine.
Prior to start of the trial, the South Korean company told the Inquirer that it was confident of winning the lawsuit. Samsung told the newspaper "trusts that the jurors will agree with its case," and further added "Patent law was never intended to give a company a monopoly over an entire market...Samsung wants to compete with Apple, not to stifle competition; to offer more choices to consumers, not to limit their ability to buy the product they want at a price they can afford," as reported on theinquire.net.
Tech giants Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. headed to a court in San Jose on July 30 to settle patent issues relating to the their smartphones and tablets. The heated tussle between the two tech giants started last year when Apple filed lawsuit against the South Korean company, accusing it of plagiarizing designs of Apples' popular iPhone and iPad. Apple is suing for $2.5 billion in damages, the largest amount ever requested in a patent infringement case.
A few months ago, due to Apple's claims that Samsung's Galaxy Tablet infringed on patents of its very popular iPad, U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh ordered the Galaxy 10.1 computer tablet to be temporarily removed from the US markets.
The two companies have been dispute in over 10 countries, earlier last month a Judge in Great Britain ruled in favor of Samsung. Judge Corin Birss released a statement saying, "They do not have the same understated and extreme simplicity which is possessed by the Apple design. They are not as cool," he said. "The overall impression produced is different," according to Reuters.
Samsung released a statement as follows: "Should Apple continue to make excessive legal claims in other countries based on such generic designs, innovation in the industry could be harmed and consumer choice unduly limited," as reported on Reuters.
In turn, Apple released a statement in direct rebuttal to the South Korean company on Reuters, "It's no coincidence that Samsung's latest products look a lot like the iPhone and iPad, from the shape of the hardware to the user interface and even the packaging."
The case was filed as: The case is Apple Inc. v. Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., 11- cv-01846, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California (San Jose).
