powerless nonadjacent: Google on Apple v. Samsung: most infringed patents 'don't relate to the core Android operating system'

Monday, August 27, 2012

Google on Apple v. Samsung: most infringed patents 'don't relate to the core Android operating system'

When the jury in Apple v. Samsung handed down its verdict on Friday, we watched Apple take a victory lap and heard Samsung warn of hampered competition, but one company remained conspicuously silent: Google. This weekend, though, Mountain View finally released a statement, insisting that while Samsung lost the trial, the ruling doesn't actually implicate Android. "The court of appeals will review both infringement and the validity of the patent claims. Most of these don't relate to the core Android operating system," the company said, noting that several of these patents are being revisited by the US Patent Office. Still, buried in that statement is an implicit acknowledgment that if Samsung can't reverse the decision on appeal, innovation among Android devices might well be be stifled:

"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."

Of course, Samsung has indeed said it intends to appeal (and an internal memo reported by CNET corroborates this), so it would seem that the proxy battle against Android is far from over, and the drone of legalese is sure to continue.

Filed under: Software, Mobile