Wireless Federation

Apple overturns German online sales ban by Motorola (USA, Germany)

On 02.08.12, In Mobile, By Editor

iPhone maker Apple Inc. has managed to overturn a ruling by the German court which imposed a ban on the sale of some of its products in the country. According to reports, Motorola Mobility had won the legal case and forced Apple to remove some of its iPhone and iPad models from the online store in Germany.

As per sources, a statement by Apple claims that all iPad and iPhone models will be back on sale through Apple’s online store in Germany shortly. Further, Apple appealed this ruling because Motorola repeatedly refuses to license this patent to Apple on reasonable terms, despite having declared it an industry standard patent seven years ago.

In response to this Motorola issued a statement saying that they are pleased that the Mannheim court has recognized the importance of their intellectual property and granted an enforceable injunction in Germany against Apple Sales International. However, although the enforcement of the injunction has been temporarily suspended, Motorola Mobility will continue to pursue its claims against Apple.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Apple • Germany • iPad • iPhone • Motorola • Motorola Mobility • online sales ban • USA

Apple and Samsung lead smartphone shipments in 2011

On 02.08.12, In Mobile, By Editor

The demand for smartphones around the world continues to witness a rise as users across segments have been increasingly replacing traditional handsets with smartphones by Samsung and Apple. According to a report by IDC, the worldwide smartphone market went up by 55 per cent in Q4 2011, largely driven by the demand for the Apple iPhone 4S.

As per the report, around 492 million smartphones were shipped in 2011, a 61 per cent rise from 305 million units in 2010. Apart from the introduction of high and medium-end devices by telecom giants Samsung and Apple, affordable handsets by these firms have gone a long way in increasing their presence in the market.

South Korea’s Samsung emerged as the leading smartphone maker for 2011, with the launch of its successful range of the Galaxy series, primarily the Galaxy SII and Galaxy Nexus. The Apple iPhone 4S helped the US manufacturer maintain its market position as well as set a new shipment volume record for a quarter.

Smartphone vendor Nokia attempted to gain back some its market share with the launch of its Windows Phones, the Lumia 710 and Lumia 800, while BlackBerry maker, Research in Motion (RIM), is still working towards recovering from the losses caused due its network outage and hopes to release its updated handset by the end of the year. Taiwanese handset maker, HTC also saw a decline in the volumes shipped in the fourth quarter as compared to the previous quarter.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Apple • Apple iPhone 4S • Blackberry • Galaxy Nexus • Galaxy SII • HTC • Nokia Lumia • Research In Motion (RIM) • Samsung • smartphone

German court says Apple did not violate Samsung’s patents (Germany, USA, South Korea)

On 01.30.12, In Mobile, By Editor

Samsung Electronics has announced that a German court has ruled in favour of Apple Inc, claiming that the USA firm had not violated Samsung’s technology patents. As per sources, Samsung had filed a lawsuit against Apple last year claiming that the iPhone maker had infringed on its technology patents.

According to reports, Samsung has responded to the ruling saying that they are disappointed that the court did not share their views regarding the infringement by Apple of this specific patent in Germany. Further, they will wait for the written grounds of the judgment, and after thorough review make a decision about a possible appeal to the Higher Regional Court Karlsruhe.

The company also said that the ruling relates to only one of several patents asserted by Samsung in the Mannheim court. A ruling on an additional Samsung patent relating to telecommunications standards is due to be handed down by the Mannheim court in the next several weeks.

Reports reveal that the German court had ruled in favour of Apple last week, in another infringement case filed by Samsung against Apple.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Apple • German court • Germany • iPhone • Patent • Samsung • South Korea • USA

Samsung records 17 percent rise in Q4 profits (South Korea)

On 01.30.12, In Mobile, By Editor

South Korean manufacturer Samsung Electronics has reported fourth quarter profits amounting to US$ 3.6 billion, representing a 17 percent increase from US$ 3.04 billion, a year earlier. The rise in demand for Galaxy smartphones helped Samsung surpass Apple as the leading handset manufacturer for 2011.

According to reports, the success of the Galaxy SII has been instrumental in Samsung selling almost 300 million handsets in the past year. Other devices such as the Galaxy Note and tablet computers launched by the company are expected to further strengthen its position in the smartphone market.

Further, apart from the high-end phones such as the SII and the Note, Samsung also offers a variety of affordable smartphones with an impressive design, thereby increasing its reach across the market. As per sources, industry analysts estimate that Samsung may succeed Apple in 2012, as mobile operators recognize Samsung as a strong competitor to Apple devices.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Apple • Galaxy Note • Galaxy SII • Q4 profits • Samsung • smartphones • South Korea • tablet computers

Apple passes Exxon as the most valuable firm (USA)

On 01.27.12, In Mobile, By Editor

Apple US giant Apple Inc has reportedly emerged as the most valuable US company surpassing Exxon once again. According to reports, the market capitalization of Apple was at $ 418.5 on Wednesday, while Exxon had a mobile capitalization of $ 413 billion. However, Exxon regained its position at the end of the day.

Apple recently reported its first quarter financial results, where in the company posted record quarterly revenue of $46.33 billion and record quarterly net profit of $13.06 billion, against a revenue of $26.74 billion and net quarterly profit of $6 billion, for the same quarter in the past year.

As per the company report, Tim Cook, CEO, Apple has said that they are thrilled with their outstanding results and record-breaking sales of iPhones, iPads and Macs. He added that Apple’s momentum is incredibly strong, and they have some amazing new products in the pipeline.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Apple • CEO • Exxon • iPADs • iPhones • MACs • market capitalization • Tim Cook

Samsung wins legal case against Apple in Netherlands (Europe)

On 01.27.12, In Mobile, By Editor

South Korean handset maker Samsun has emerged victorious once again after a Dutch court rejected rival Apple Inc’s plea from banning the distribution of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 in the Netherlands. According to reports, the court has ruled in favour of Samsung, citing that the Galaxy Tab had some similarities to the design registered in 2004 but not to Apple’s iPad released in 2010.

As per sources, Apple had filed a legal suit against Samsung claiming patent infringement on its design, hardware and user interface among others. However, the ruling enables the Korean firm to sell its tablet computer in the Netherlands and throughout the European Union.

Reports reveal that the US giant had said that it was 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. Further, this kind of blatant copying is wrong and they need to protect Apple’s intellectual property when companies steal their ideas.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Apple • Galaxy Tab 10.1 • iPad • iPhone • Netherlands • patent- infringement • Samsung

Free Mobile launches mobile services (France)

On 01.13.12, In Mobile, By Editor

Mobile subscribers in France now have a fourth operator to choose from as Iliad’s Free Mobile launched its voice and data services in the country this week. As per reports, Free Mobile will offer users unlimited calls, SMS and MMS along with free internet access up to 3 GB for US$ 25.5 per month.

The operator has launched these highly competitive price plans in a bid to compete with its rivals and invite more subscribers. Xavier Niel, Chief Strategy Officer, Iliad has reportedly said that they aim to provide users with complete access to the internet including peer-to-peer access and VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) among others.

Further, according to sources Free Mobile has signed an agreement with U.S. handset maker Apple and will offer customers Apple handsets with multiple payback schemes.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Apple • France • Free Mobile • Iliad • Xavier Niel

iPhone 4S users demand twice as much data as iPhone 4 users

On 01.13.12, In Mobile, By Editor

The launch of the Apple iPhone 4S has enhanced data download by 2.76 times as compared with the iPhone 3G, according to network management firm Arieso.

According to company reports, Dr. Michael Flanagan, CTO, Arieso, has said that the introduction of increasingly sophisticated devices, coupled with growing consumer demand, is creating unrelenting pressure on mobile networks. Further, the capacity crunch is still a very real threat for mobile operators, and it looks set to only get harder in 2012. He added that the mobile industry needs new investment and new approaches to boost network performance and manage the customer experience.

As per the report, the company states that iPhone 4S users lead the way in terms of data demand followed by users of the iPhone 4. However, Google Nexus users were found to use more data than iPhone 3G users. Flanagan said that this report helps an operator to understand the amount of data consumption brought in by each different smartphone. This can enable them to manage their network traffic, as per trends, so as to avoid congestion and meet user requirements.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Apple • Arieso • Dr. Michael Flanagan • Google Nexus • iPhone 4S

Apple to launch two new iPad devices in 2012 (USA)

On 01.02.12, In Mobile, By Editor

U.S. device manufacturer Apple Inc. may launch two new iPad devices in the coming year. According to reports, the new iPad models are expected to be priced higher than the iPad 2, and will cover the medium and high range segments.

As per industry sources, a major highlight of the new iPad models is going to be an extended battery life, which is rumoured to be more than double of the iPad 2. Further, rumours suggest that Apple has approached Korean giant Samsung to supply the iPad maker with new quad-core A6 processors to be embedded in the new iPads along with a 5 megapixel camera for the medium range iPad. Sources claim that Sony Ericsson will be supplying Apple with an 8 megapixel camera for its second iPad model which is expected to be targeted at the high end segment.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Apple • iPad • Samsung • Sony Ericsson

Apple wins patent battle against HTC (USA, Taiwan)

On 12.23.11, In Mobile, By Editor

Apple Inc has emerged victorious in its patent lawsuit against handset manufacturer HTC, as the International Trade Commission has reportedly ruled that HTC has infringed on one patent held by the iPhone maker. As per reports, any of HTC’s phones using the technology which has been infringed will be banned from sales in the USA from 19 April, 2012.

According to reports, industry analysts believe that the ruling is not expected to have a major impact on the company’s sales as the ruling gives them enough time to come up with another feature to compensate for the infringed feature.

As per sources, HTC has said that the feature in question is a common user-interface function which enables smartphone users to access information such as contact numbers and e-mail addresses from apps and other sources, and use them by simply tapping on the text.

The victory will be well received by Apple, after losing out to Korean giant Samsung, on a similar patent infringement case in Australia last month.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Android • Apple • Australia • Google • HTC • Patent • Samsung • smartphone • USA