Samsung plans no patent settlement with Apple

SEOUL, Wednesday

A top Samsung executive has said that the South Korean electronics giant had no plans to follow Taiwanese firm HTC in seeking a settlement over its patent disputes with arch-rival Apple.

Samsung and Apple are currently embroiled in patent lawsuits in 10 nations, including the United States and Germany, accusing each other of stealing design and technology.

HTC, which had been locked in similar suits with Apple around the world, announced on Sunday that the two companies had reached a deal to end all outstanding litigation and sign a 10-year licensing agreement over patents.

“We have no such intention,” Mr J.K. Shin, the head of Samsung Electronics’ mobile unit, told reporters when asked if Samsung would seek a similar settlement.

Samsung — the world’s top mobile and smartphone maker — was ordered by a US jury in August to pay Apple $1.05 billion (about Sh90 billion) in damages for illegally copying iPhone and iPad features for its flagship Galaxy S smartphones. It has appealed the ruling.

Since then, two separate rulings by courts in Japan and the Netherlands have dismissed Apple’s claims of patent infringement.

Mr Shin also said today that Samsung expected fourth-quarter smartphone sales to be as strong as the third quarter, when its newest Galaxy S3 device became the world’s top-selling smartphone.