Samsung ‘went and copied the iPhone,” Apple’s Senior Vice President of Worldwide Product Marketing, Phil Schiller has told a Californian court.
With the longstanding legal battle between the two companies hitting fever pitch, Apple’s Schiller has suggested that the first Samsung Galaxy S handset was a direct copy of the iPhone and caused consumers to question Apple’s ‘innovation and design skills’.
As a retrial between Apple and Samsung continues over the Korean manufacturer’s claimed infringement on its Cupertino-based rival’s patent and trademark holdings, Schiller has laid the boot into Samsung, suggesting its copying made it harder to sell iPhone and iPad devices.
{pulquote}“They went and copied the iPhone,”{/pullquote} Schiller told Judge Lucy Koh during his testimony in California. He added that he had been left “quite shocked” after the original Samsung Galaxy S was unveiled.
Detailing the damages he believes Samsung’s claimed infringements had on Apple, Schiller stated: “It weakens the view that the world has for Apple. He added that the copying made consumers “question our innovation and design skills in a way that people never used to.”
Further looking to highlight his point, upon being shown a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 in court Schiller is reported to have said: “I don’t know which Samsung devices are allowed to copy our devices and which ones aren’t. It looks like and iPad.”
Despite courts last August ordering Samsung to pay $1.05 billion (£650m) in damages to Apple, a figure later lowered, Apple has taken its rival back to court, seeking a higher fee. While Samsung believes it should pay just $52 million in damages, Apple is seeking a settlement closer to $380 million.
Defending its own corner, Samsung’s legal representatives have hit out at the iMac and iPod touch maker, stating “Apple doesn’t own a patent on a product being beautiful or sexy. Apple doesn’t own the right to preclude the design of this hardware.”
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Via: WallStreetJournal
