Apple has suffered a large and potentially embarrassing setback in the its fight patent war against Samsung. UK Judge Colin Birss has ordered Apple to take out advertisements in major newspapers – including the Daily Mail, the Guardian and the Financial Times saying that Samsung did not copy the iPad. According to Bloomberg, the ruling comes after Apple’s comment after his first ruling back in July 9, with the firm from Cupertino saying that “It’s no coincidence that Samsung’s latest products look a lot like the iPhone and iPad, from the shape of the hardware to the user interface and even the packaging. This kind of blatant copying is wrong and, as we’ve said many times before, we need to protect Apple’s intellectual property when companies steal our ideas.”
This particular ruling is a major embarrasment for Apple because as bitter as its battle against Samsung is, it has never had to acknowledge the Korean brand in any of its marketing materials, which includes advertising. Yes, there’s some wink wink, nudge nudge references here and there, but the company has never really mentioned it’s rival(s) by name. We’re sure we’ll be seeing those advertisements soon enough if Apple does not appeal.
Source: Bloomberg