While Apple are notoriously secret when it comes to new product unveilings, the same cannot be said for the company’s willingness to press forward with legal action against rival manufacturers in a public fashion.
After being embroiled in a patent spat with Samsung throughout most of 2011, Apple has now taken the bold step in trying to block sales of Google and Samsung’s flagship Galaxy Nexus Android handset in the US.
Apple has officially asked Californian courts for a preliminary injunction of all Galaxy Nexus sales in the country, as they feel that the Ice Cream Sandwich device violates a total of four patents, three of which were only just filed recently. The patents in question can be seen in detail over at Apple Insider and include information related to ‘data tapping’, Siri, a slide-to-unlock feature and also a word completion patent which specifically relates to touchscreen text entry.
Apple obviously believe that Google’s Galaxy Nexus violates the four patents in question, and perhaps more worrying for consumers looking to pick up the device, Apple may have a chance of winning this battle according to patent blogger Florian Mueller. In a blog post on the subject, we also hear how Apple may also have a long list of other Samsung devices that they also plan to target for patent infringement, but in this case the Galaxy Nexus was allegedly picked out ‘because it’s so new and important’.
Google and Samsung are yet to react to the court filing, but if Apple does have a case here, then we may see Google resort to some drastic software changes to the Galaxy Nexus in order to keep their device on the market and available for purchase. It would seem fairly outrageous though if Apple do manage to completely block the sales of the Galaxy Nexus in the US, so hopefully Google will not let it come to that.
If you’re an iPhone owner reading this, what are your thoughts on this? A little healthy competition between the two smartphone makers is always welcome in our books, so do you take pleasure in hearing that the Galaxy Nexus could be blocked or not? As for current Galaxy Nexus owners fearing drastic alterations to your handset, is this a case of when are Apple going to stop these legal shenanigans?
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