Samsung quick to capitalise on Apple woes

SAMSUNG IS ONE of the most revered brands in the world of Olympic sport. In addition to a long-standing relationship with the IOC, the Korean hi-tech company is an important funder of many minority sports federations courtesy of its IOC member chairman Lee Kun-hee. However it’s safe to say that its stock is considerably lower at rival Apple. The US megabrand has not had a good week. First its iPhone 4S was less than rapturously received by the world’s technology media who were expecting a more radical revamp. Then it faced the sad news that its talismanic founder, Steve Jobs had finally succumbed to pancreatic cancer. Not that any of this seems to have concerned Samsung who promptly launched a fresh legal action in three European markets in an attempt to block sales of the new iPhone. The Koreans may have accidentally revealed rather more of their position than they intended however. Their claim in Italy, France and Germany accuses Apple of infringing a primary patent, a term usually applied to core technology which provides a common industry platform. The end game in the two brands’ long-running dispute looks was always likely to be a negotiated settlement but on this week’s news Apple looks likely to emerge the stronger.