Samsung denies Galaxy Nexus a target

The Galaxy Nexus' unlock method isn't the target of Apple legal action, Samsung said in commentary Wednesday. Directly addressing claims it was included in a dispute over German utility models, an unnamed official told the Korea Herald that they had looked through the complaint and hadn't found the Android 4.0 phone in the group. Other Galaxy devices were targets.

"We’re aware that there was a hearing involving Apple’s slide-to-unlock feature after our patent infringement case last Friday and a series of products in the Galaxy lineup were accused there, but what we’ve discovered is that the Galaxy Nexus wasn’t one of them," the official explained.

If borne out by the court, the exemption could see the Galaxy Nexus and possibly many more devices exempt from future Apple action on at least the slide-to-unlock dispute. Its unlock approach uses a ring metaphor that lets users freely unlock the phone on any path to a given point, not a fixed path. As a reference Android 4.0 phone, any legal clearances it gets will apply to any device that uses Google's implementation of the OS.

Most of Apple's complaints against Samsung design have been leveled at its customizations. The TouchWiz interface layer looks conspicuously like Apple's iOS, while the large centered home button on Samsung's non-US smartphones is conspicuously like that of an iPhone's but different than the layout from virtually any other Android hardware partner.

Samsung, meanwhile, is pressing Apple over the next week in Germany. Rulings on Friday and February 2 could determine whether or not at least the iPhone 4S is banned in the country over 3G patent claims. The Korean accuser may face an uphill battle given rejections of claims in Italy and France that will likely be taken into consideration.

By Electronista Staff