Apple Patent Suit Could Change Smartphone Market

A patent war with rival Samsung ended with a major victory for Apple — a victory that could kill future smartphone competition. Anyone following the raging patent war between South Korea’s Samsung and American tech giant Apple knows the battle has been fierce. And although a jury’s decision ended one legal battle on Friday, the war has really just begun.  

Apple patent lawsuit | BCBusiness
Apple’s win in a patent lawsuit against rival Samsung has already set off an investor frenzy, boosting the company’s stock 1.8 per cent.

A patent war with rival Samsung ended with a major victory for Apple — a victory that could kill future smartphone competition.

Anyone following the raging patent war between South Korea’s Samsung and American tech giant Apple knows the battle has been fierce. And although a jury’s decision ended one legal battle on Friday, the war has really just begun.
 
The jury selected to decide which company ripped off whose patents ruled in Apple’s favour late last week, sparking a vicious global debate over the ensuing fate of the smartphone market.
 
Currently, Apple’s only real obstacle in smartphone domination is Samsung. Samsung devices, which run on Google’s Android operating system, and Apple’s iOS constitute a combined market share of 85 per cent as of the second quarter of 2012. While Android was leading iOS with 68.1 per cent of the market share at that time, the patent decision will likely alter the gap in Apple’s favour.
 
 Investors are already responding accordingly to Samsung’s legal setback, boosting Apple’s stock to a new record high of $680.87 on Monday and sending Samsung’s spiraling down 7.5 per cent.
 
And the war still rages — at least nine more similar patent lawsuits between the smartphone manufacturers have yet to be decided.