SAMSUNG'S TOP LAWYER: Apple, Just Give Up Already, You've Lost

Depending on how you look at it, Apple either won, or lost its most recent patent lawsuit in California.

Apple was awarded ~$120 million in damages after a jury ruled Samsung violated Apple patents, but Apple was seeking $2.2 billion in damages.

Before the jury delivered its verdict, Samsung's lawyers told the jury, "They'll be dancing in the streets of Cupertino if you give them $100 million." (Cupertino is the California town where Apple is headquartered.)

Well, after winning $100 million, Samsung has a slightly different view for Apple.

In an interview with CNET, top Samsung attorney John Quinn has some brutal quotes for Apple. Basically, he says it's time to give up.

• "Up to this point, I think Apple really hadn't given up hope [it] could cripple Android somehow ... This has got to be the last straw. They've got to realize they're not going to slow Android down by suing people."
• "Years into Apple's holy war on Android, they haven't collected a nickel."
• "They (Apple) have nothing to show for the hundreds of million of dollars they've spent ... I'm sure they're looking for a graceful exit. ... I'm pretty sure the Apple smartphone wars against Android are a thing with a limited future."

We're inclined to agree with Quinn, here. It's unclear what, if anything, Apple has gotten out of its suits with Samsung.

On the other hand, there's a chance that it isn't about the money for Apple. It's about principle. Apple thinks Samsung blatantly copied its products and wants it on the record.

The best you can argue is that Samsung is copying Apple slightly less. But, even that's not really happening. Apple came out with a gold iPhone with a fingerprint scanner in 2013, and in 2014, Samsung added a gold model with a fingerprint scanner to its phone. In 2013 Apple went with a flatter look for its software, and in 2014, so did Samsung.

Meanwhile, Samsung has smoked Apple in unit shipments, and taken over market share in smartphones. Samsung has also successfully dinged Apple's reputation as a cool company through a series of cheeky ads.

And, Samsung started selling gigantic phones that people really like. Apple now has to catch up with Samsung.

Apple maybe, might have dented Samsung's reputation by winning a few patent suits, but overall, Apple probably came out worse looking like the aggressor.

Via: BGR