The ugly and growing spat between Apple and Samsung is becoming somewhat like a digital World War.
Other players in the mobile industry are now choosing sides, and it seems like Samsung is gaining the most support.
Patent lawsuits are commonplace in the technology industry. But this growing story between Apple and Samsung is getting ugly. It really kicked up when Apple started opening lawsuits in countries all around the world, claiming Samsung’s Galaxy Tab was nothing but a cheap rip-off of the iPad.
In most jurisdictions, for Apple to win a lawsuit that actually bans Galaxy Tab sales, the company needs to prove that consumers would actually be confused at the store, not being able to tell the difference between an iPad and a Galaxy Tab.
In the US, it seems unlikely that Apple will be successful in that attempt. However, it has managed to actually ban the Samsung device in Germany and Australia. Now Apple is actually threatening to sue retailers who stock the Galaxy Tab in those regions.
In response, Samsung has filed a landslide of patent infringement lawsuits against Apple for various mobile technologies.
It doesn’t end there. Apple is now trying to ban sales of the Samsung Galaxy S 4G phone in the US, which would run on T-Mobile. In response, the carrier is coming out and saying enough is enough.
T-Mobile stepped into the case and asked the court if it could submit a legal filing in the hopes of preventing any sort of preliminary injunction. The carrier also wants to appear at the hearing when Apple and Samsung lawyers will present their case next month.
T-Mobile has joined Verizon in a growing list of companies siding with Samsung in this ugly intellectual property battle.
