I’ve put together several quotes from the KoreaTimes, one of the leading news website in Korea. For obvious reasons, they are not please with the verdict handed down in the US.
Steve Jobs was Deceptive:
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“Set aside all the hanky panky about the U.S. jury’s $1.05 bil. verdict in favor of Apple over Samsung Electronics in their patent dispute.
The real issue is whether the framework of the century-old patent laws, which served as the basis for the San Jose decision, has outlived its essential usefulness for inspiring innovation.
The essential process of this involves building upon and improving the works of others. This was precisely the real genius of the late Steve Jobs as he converted the touch-screen computer from a colossal flop to a mainstream consumer device and invented smartphones on the basis of ideas that he couldn’t claim to be his and his alone.
Kim Ki-chang, a Korea University law professor who has been actively involved in technology-related legal debates here, described Apple’s legal moves as a gross abuse of intellectual property law.
“I think the whole case highlights the limitations and side effects of patent laws, which I believed need to be entirely rebooted. Throughout its short history of around 100 years, the supporters of patent laws described them as a key requirement to inspire innovation. In reality, however, it has been killing innovation and providing an easy way for dominant companies to cement their dominance, fair trade ideals be damned,’’ Kim said.
According to Kim, “So does this mean that Apple is the only handset maker in the world that should be allowed to produce smartphones with curved corners? We live in a highly-developed, complicated world where it’s impossible for a company to produce a product without stepping on a patent or two. Now, only the biggest companies that can swallow enormous legal fees are allowed to defend their market positions, while smaller firms are easily buried under a pile of lawsuits, taking innovation with them.”
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Samsung Banning the new iPhone from South Korea:
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“Apple is in negotiations with Korean mobile-phone carriers SK Telecom and KT over the local launch of the next iPhone, which could be unveiled as early as sometime in September.
Supporting LTE on its iPhones will be more difficult for Apple than when it was pushing 3G devices. Different countries use different radio frequencies for their LTE networks, requiring Apple to install different communication modems for the various countries.
This also complicates the negotiation with carriers over supply, and SK Telecom and KT worry that Samsung will push for a sales ban on the newest iPhone. According to company officials, Samsung is not only seeking a sales ban in Korea, but also in Britain, France and even the U.S., the nation of its recent humiliation.
“Yes, we are mulling the possibility to file to block selling the new iPhones in Korea. However, no decision has been made, as a limited move in Korea won’t have much impact on our business overall,’’ said one Samsung executive, who didn’t want to be named.”
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Samsung Left Reeling After Verdict Uppercut:
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“Samsung Electronics’ uphill court battle against Apple in the United States over intellectual property patent infringement now looks insurmountable after a jury in San Jose awarded the American technology giant an overwhelming victory.
While Samsung officials in Seoul weren’t expecting a convincing win in a trial held at the heart of Silicon Valley, they hadn’t been expecting such a lopsided loss either.
Jurors awarded Apple $1.05 billion in damages, deciding that Samsung did indeed copy the look and feel of iPhones and iPads in its own lineup of smartphones and touch-screen tablets. They rejected all of Samsung’s claims against Apple, which included critical third-generation (3G) wireless technologies.
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It’s absolutely the worst scenario for us,” a senior Samsung executive said.
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Samsung executives were still reeling in shock Sunday, but provided no clear hint on the company’s next move in the showdown with its industry archrival. It’s widely expected that Samsung will appeal, but the outlook for success in the appeal now looks rather murky.
“It’s absolutely the worst scenario for us,’’ a senior Samsung executive said as he rushed into the company’s compound in southern Seoul.
“As far as I know, it’s very rare for the presiding judge to make a decision going against the verdict by jurors,’’ said one Samsung official.”
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Source: KoreaTimes
