If you thought thelegal wranglingbetween Apple and Samsungwas settledwith August’s patent-infringement jury decision, you were wrong. In a patent infringement lawsuit filed in February in the same San. Jose, Calif. courthouse that awarded Apple $1.05 billion in damages, the two rivals are preparing for a grudge match. Now theWall Street Journalreports the South Korean smartphone maker “anticipates” it will add the iPhone 5 to the iPhone 4S in its list of allegedly infringing devices.
Likelystill stingingfrom its patent-infringement loss, the maker of theGalaxy Stold the court it expects the new iPhone will be part of a lawsuit against Apple set for 2014. The one hold-up: the iPhone 5 isn’t expected tohit store shelvesuntil Friday.
Samsung willadd the iPhone 5to its list of problematic devices “as soon as it has had a reasonable opportunity to analyze the device,” according to today’s report.
The move is not unexpected. Apple — which also claims Samsung infringes upon eight of its patents — recently added the South Korean smartphone maker’sbrand-spanking new Galaxy S IIIto its list of offending devices. What is unknown is whether Samsung can offer new evidence not already considered by the court and if the South Korean company can expect a different outcome than the one announced in August.
However, in the lifespan of patent infringement lawsuits, 2014 is light-years away. Possibly more pressing is aDec. 6 court datewhen Samsung and Apple will again appear before federal Judge Lucy Koh. There, Samsung will likely argue the jury’s decision be set aside, while Apple reportedly willpress for $3 billionin damages. In the meantime, Apple fans are expected to purchase record numbers of iPhone 5 no matter how long the court drama drags on.
