German court bins Apple’s patent case against Motorola

Following a recent UK court decision, Apple has again lost in its attempt to have a competitor banned. The Dusseldorf court found that Motorola’s Xoom tablet doesn't infringe on Apple's Community design patent for the iPad while oddly upholding the validity of the actual design patent itself.

This outcome is just the latest in a series of setbacks for Apple, the company having failed so far to achieve any significant and permanent ban on its competitor’s products. And bans are what each and every case has attempted to extract, in Apple’s “thermonuclear” litigation programme against Android-powered devices. As Android has constantly increased its lead in market share over Apple’s iOS-powered iPhones, and although no single competitor tablet has enjoyed the success of say, Samsung’s Galaxy S III in the smartphone arena, the danger to the iPad’s media tablet market share is very real to Apple.

Currently, the iPad pwns the category with more than 60% (although the numbers for the latest quarter will be released on July 24 and that figure may change), but Cupertino’s favourite fruit company will not be content to relinquish any share to its competition. So every opportunity to keep competitors out of the market, however small their share relative to the iPad’s, is seen as a given.

Had Apple prevailed in this action, the ruling would have likely applied to the entire EU, which would certainly offer comfort to Apple and raise the stakes for each case to follow. However, the lack of success has not dimmed the ardour that the company feels for marketing by litigation – it’s obviously gambling that it’ll score a big pay-off before the legal systems of the world tire of being the defacto marketing departments of the Cupertino colossus.

This latest outcome also comes on the heels of a US decision where Apple again sued Motorola, and in that decision too, Apple’s suit was thrown out. No doubt there will be sighs of relief at the HQs of Motorola Mobility and new owners Google, although the anticipation of Apple’s next “thermonuclear” salvo must be palpable. And make no mistake; another salvo will be on its way.

Source: Associated Press