Apple has extended its legal battle with Samsung over patents and design to Japan, seeking a cessation of sales of some products and 100 million Yen (around £800,000) in damages.
The pair have been in acrimonious dispute over alleged design similarities and patent infringement in Europe for months, with Apple recently scoring blows with bans of sales in Germany and Holland, including pre-sales of its Galaxy Tab 7.7.
According to reports, the company has now taken that fight to Japan, alleging patent infringement on both its iPhone and iPad, products that go head to head with Samsung’s Galaxy phones and Galaxy Tab slate.
An initial hearing took place into the claims yesterday, with Apple seeking to prevent sales of the Galaxy S and its sequel S II smartphones, and the Galaxy Tab 7. “It is no coincidence that Samsung’s latest products look a lot like iPhone and iPad, from the shape of the hardware to the user interface and even the packaging,” Seoul-based Apple spokesman Steve Park told the Wall Street Journal.
“This kind of blatant copying is wrong and we need to protect the Apple’s intellectual property when companies steal our ideas.”
Samsung said it would defend its position.
The news come as the mobile industry is descending into the legal equivalent of a Wild West bar brawl, with competitors taking pot shots at every opportunity.
Google has handed nine critical patents to Android licensee HTC, taking aim at Apple in a separate dispute over the Android OS.
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