In light of HTC settlement, Samsung’s JK Shin still sees no deal with Apple
When HTC and Apple came to an agreement on a 10-year cross-licensing deal, those of us sick of hearing about a new patent lawsuit every week were hopeful that similar settlements could be reached in other high-profile cases. This won’t be the case with Samsung, according to top dog JK Shin. The Samsung Mobile chief said, “Regardless of HTC’s settlement with Apple, we have no intention [to settle].”
Yes, Samsung plans to fight this out until the bitter end, and why wouldn’t they? Despite a recent loss in the US courts that, depending on how appeals play out, will see the Korean mobile maker forking over $1 billion in damages to Apple, their fortunes have been better elsewhere. A court in the UK ruled that Samsung did not infringe on Apple’s iPad design and ordered the Cupertino, Calif. company to post a notice on their site clarifying the matter for their customers (an order which was disobeyed and saw Apple fronting Samsung’s court costs).
That is not to mention speculation that the deal between HTC and Apple favors the latter company. Industry sources have come forward saying that Apple could be owed $6-$8 for every handset HTC ships. Samsung could afford such a settlement more easily than HTC, but it sounds like the company would much rather duke it out than come to a peaceful resolution outside the courtroom.
Apple and Samsung have both been stubborn throughout their numerous legal battles, with neither company ceding ground easily. A settlement would ultimately come down to one side buckling before the other, and it sounds like Samsung isn’t prepared to be the one to wave the white flag.
[via SammyHub]