Samsung countersues Apple over iPad, iPhone dispute

Apple's recent lawsuit against Korea-based Samsung Electronics Ltd. and its American subsidiaries states that the company infringed on patents pertaining to the former's successful iPhone and iPad devices, framing the alleged mimicry as "slavish."

Samsung has now copied Apple's initial legal coup by launching a countersuit, accusing the manufacturer of - you guessed it - patent infringement.

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Comprised of three distinct filings - one in South Korea, one in Japan and the third in Germany - and noting 10 specific infringements, Samsung's return volley comes as the electronics giant sees shares in the company dipping.

Legal and copyright blog FOSS Patents' Florian Mueller believes it's only a matter of time before the foreign filings hit U.S. courts: "I venture to guess that it won't take long before we also see infringement accusations by Samsung against Apple in the US, most likely as counterclaims to Apple's lawsuit in the Northern District of California, and possibly beyond."

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Bloomberg spoke with Samsung representative James Chung on Friday about the filing. He told the news site the accusations hinge on Samsung patents related to PC-to-mobile phone wireless connectivity and vague "communication standards."

When news of the original Apple suit broke, some immediately foresaw an impending countersuit, citing a statement issued by Samsung in response to Apple's allegations claiming it would "respond actively" to the legal action.

In Apple's complaint (.pdf), the company lamented the emulation its success has elicited from competitors -- from the very design of Samsung's Galaxy Tab and smartphone counterpart to the technology that powers the devices.

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A statement issued by Samsung defended its course of action against Apple: "Samsung is responding actively to the legal action taken against us in order to protect our intellectual property and to ensure our continued innovation and growth in the mobile communications business."

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