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Apple cries ?foul? over voice-activated search on Galaxy Nexus

Apple continues to go after Samsung on the legal front and is now alleging that the South Korean handset manufacturer violated four patents in its new Galaxy Nexus, the first smartphone using Android?s Ice Cream Sandwich operating system.

Apple and Samsung are competing for the position as the world?s No. 1 smartphone, a battle that increasingly includes using legal means to protect intellectual property. At issue in the latest legal suit is the use of voice-command search and the ability to unlock a phone by sliding an image.

?I find it surprising that Apple has the gall to try this,? said Michael Morgan, an analyst with ABI Research, New York. ?Voice-activated search has been on Android phones for a while ? technically before Apple had it.

?A lot of the IP around this stuff does not come from Google or Apple,? he said.

?I will be very surprised if it plays out or maybe this is just something to keep the lawyers busy.?

Equal footing
Apple is asking the federal court in California to block Samsung from selling the new Galaxy Nexus phone because it infringes on underlying features that it says customers expect from Apple products, such as voice-activated search.

The other patents in question reportedly involve recognizing a phone number in email and enabling a user to call that number, technology that completes partial words as they are input.

?Both companies have the same level of ability to innovate and be successful with platforms and both now have equal scale in terms of smartphones,? Mr. Morgan said.

?They are equal on so many footings that the legal side has to be brought in for this battle,? he said.

?There are so many different IP points to attack, they could draw this out forever. When it comes to spending money it looks like Apple has the distinct advantage but Samsung is doing well enough that they can afford to stay in this game for a little while.?

If Apple and Samsung are on equal footing in many areas, the question is are they also equal when it comes to legal issues?

?I do not even think an IP lawyer can answer that one,? Mr. Morgan said.

?Samsung has some good positioning in the hardware and connectivity space and Apple has a good position in software,? he said. ?Both borrow voice stuff from somebody else."

It is possible that Apple will extend the suit to other hardware manufacturers such as HTC Corp. and Motorola Mobility once they adopt the software.

However, it may be easy for Android OEMs to come up with a workaround in this case.

?If it is not about the core IP, it should not be that hard to come up with a workaround,? Mr. Morgan said.

Apple recently lost ground on the intellectual property front when courts in Germany and Australia ruled against the technology giant.

In Germany, Motorola won an injunction against the sale of iPhones and iPad there while, in Australia, an ongoing battle with Samsung saw the court lift an injunction against the Galaxy Tab 10.1.

Last year, Apple sued Samsung over design features in the iPhone and iPad. That case is still ongoing.

Apple and Samsung are also involved in numerous other legal battles in other countries.

?Apple appears to be expanding its dispute with Samsung beyond hardware and design and into software, asserting violations of different patents involving the touch screen interface and voice activation of software features,? said Jason Koslofsky, an attorney with ArentFox LLP, Washington.

?Apple looks very willing to continue fighting Samsung in both the retail and legal arenas.  Samsung probably included many of the features involved in the dispute after gauging customer reactions, so expect future disputes as new features are added to smartphones,? he said.

Final Take
Chantal Tode is associate editor on Mobile Marketer, New York