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Apple vs Samsung: $120 Million not Enough!

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Apple Wants 9 Samsung’s Android Phones Banned for Copyright Infringement

Apple vs Samsung, SmartphoneApple Inc. (Nasdaq:AAPL) has moved to court seeking ban on sale of some of Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd’s (KRX: 005935) Android phones in a redo of Apple vs Samsung legal suit. The phones, Apple say, have infringed three of its patents. This comes in just over a week after the iPhone maker had signed a truce with Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG), which owns the Android platform, to drop lawsuits between them and work together in some areas.

On 2nd May, court awarded Apple $120 million out of the $2.2 billion it sought from the South Korean electronics giant for infringing its patent rights. The latter was found guilty infringing three out of five patents of which it used in Google’s Android operating system. The Apple vs Samsung patent issue revolve around iOS user-interface design used in iPad and iPhones.

Again, a few days ago Apple identified nine devices it wants barred in the U.S. as shown in a court filing with the U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California.

Apple vs Samsung: Battle for Control of the Smartphone Market

It will be remembered that Koh presided over the first Apple vs Samsung U.S. legal battle between the two Smartphone makers. However, Apple which now trails Samsung in terms of shipment of Smartphones, will be kin to see how the judge handles the case given that she had twice rejected the company’s request. The iPhone maker believes that a sales ban would be more rewarding than being paid for monetary damages. Already the two companies have been engrossed in legal battles in at least four continents dating back to 2011.

The Apple vs Samsung legal battles are often associated with fight for dominance in the Smartphone market valued at approximately $338.2 billion. While the two are not the only players in the market, they control a chunk of it, with Samsung leading with 31% from 32% it held a year earlier, and Apple controlling about 15% , 3 % down from what it held earlier.

The market smaller players are from China and they include Huawei Technologies Co. and Xiaomi Corp. The two Chinese smartphone makers are producing feature packed Android phones and selling them at a cheaper price. They have markets in emerging markets in Asia and Africa, and this is why they are eating into the shares held by both Samsung and Apple.

Samsung Devices Apple wants Banned

According to the court filing, Apple wants nine Samsung Android phones banned in the U.S. market. They are:

  • the Admire
  • Galaxy Nexus
  • Galaxy Note
  • Galaxy Note 2
  • Galaxy S2
  • Galaxy S2 Epic 4G Touch
  • Galaxy S2 Skyrocket
  • Galaxy S3
  • Galaxy Stratosphere

Conclusion

In announcing their truce with Google, Apple spokeswoman was very clear on Apple’s patent litigation against Samsung. The truce, she said, was having no bearing in the iPhone maker’s case against Samsung. Nevertheless, it is important to note that Samsung is the leading user of the Google’s Android operating system.

Samsung’s newest flagship products, the Galaxy S4 and S5, have not been involved in the legal tussles and the company is counting on them in the battle for control of the ever swelling Smartphone market. Galaxy S5 went on sale March 27 in South Korea, but has tumbled following poor ratings. Tech experts, tech journalists and analysts are set for another Apple vs Samsung and waiting to see what it will bring, as the battle for the smartphone market takes centre stage.

Android Silver: Google’s Answer to Apple’s Quality

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Android Silver could help Google take on Apple on battle for the Smartphone Market

There are unconfirmed reports that Google is working on a new operating system dubbed “Android Silver”, targeting the affluent, in an attempt to re-write the notion that ‘Android is for poor people’.

The move will be widely considered to be an attempt to tame Apple (AAPL), whose Smartphone brand (iPhone) has enjoyed unrivalled success. Already new data shows that Google’s Android has overtaken Apple’s iOS by market share, and according to data shared by Opera Mediaworks, Android is also expected to catch up in terms of mobile revenue by the end of the year.

The Crown Jewel of the Smartphone Market

iPhone, Android Silver, Smartphone, iOSiPhone controlled a chunk of the Smartphone market share, until Smartphones using Google’s Android operating system emerged. Currently Apple plays second fiddle to Android bestseller Samsung. Nevertheless, iPhone still leads in a variety of areas including mobile revenue, e-commerce and mobile payments.

Currently, Apple gets 75% of its revenue from the Smartphone market. Already Google Play app store has overtaken Apple’s iTunes as the app store with the highest number of downloads. But Apple is still ahead in terms of revenues from these downloads as its users often pay more.

It is widely believed that iPhone users shop for quality and opulence, and that is why they pay the high prices charged for iPhones. Indeed, it is true that iPhone is superior in terms of platform quality, but Android is slowly catching up. However, the perception that ‘Android phones are for poor people’ still weigh heavily on Android. As you read this, iPhone is still the crown jewel of the Smartphone market.

What People Are Saying About Android Silver Plan

According to reports posted by The Information last week, Android Silver is meant for high-end smartphones to compete with iPhone. Google will work with mobile phone manufacturers to produce high-end smartphones with a limited number of non-Google apps. These apps will be pre-installed, but the consumers will have the option to uninstall them.

There are also rumours that Google could be bringing in Android Silver to replace its Nexus phones. Nexus is Google’s four year old brand of pure Android operating system. The Android system used by different manufacturers have been customized by those who utilize it to fit their different needs such as own interfaces, browsers, custom apps, and services. Nexus is the basic Android. The introduction of Android Silver OS could also be an attempt by Google to dictate Android phone manufacturers to use Android with limited customizations, if any.

The Google Nexus Android phones are difficult to tell if they are really Android. This is because, unlike the normal Android phones that display Android at startup, Nexus phones display the makers’ names or just “Google”. So perhaps Google wants to do away with this feature since it wants to establish Android as its own brand.

Conclusion

Taking the fight to Apple won’t be easy, and this is why the California based internet giant is expected to spend a fortune on the Android Silver program. Rumours have it that the figure could be as much as $1 billion, only for marketing and support services for this new OS. But given what is at stake if the Android Silver system succeeds, this could be a small token.

Google might have finally found the answer to Apple’s iOS unrivalled quality. But there are more questions than answers about Android Silver that can only be answered by Google itself!

iOS Gradually Losing Ground to Google’s Android

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Apple Losing its Market Dominance at all Angles

apple, iOSAs shown by different research companies in Q1 2014, Apple (AAPL) is gradually losing its target audience to rival firms that are using the Android platform,. The company shipped 43.7 million units of iPhone and16.4 million units of iPad during the first quarter. According to research firm IDC, iPhone and iPad both shed more market shares they held a year earlier.

Elsewhere, another research company, Opera Mediaworks, has revealed that iOS is no longer the leading platform in terms of the size of the audience. According to the data, the number Android users who interact with mobile ads outnumber their iOS counterparts.

iPhone Shipment Increase but Apple Sheds Market Share

iPhone saw double digit sales growth in Japan and multiple developing markets such China, Brazil, Indonesia and India. Though Apple’s Smartphone market share dropped to 15.5% in Q1 2014, it is the first time the company has shipped 43.7 million units in a quarter.

Apple trails Samsung Electronics Co. (005930), which is still enjoying the top spot, thanks to its competitive pricing and the increasing capacity of the Google Play app store. The latter now controls 30.2% of the market, down from the 31.7% it had a year earlier. However, this figure compares well with the last quarter’s 28.8%. During the Q1 2014 quarter, the company shipped 85 million Smartphone units, up from 69.7 million in Q1 2013.

Since both Apple and Samsung market share dropped, but their respective shipment increased, it is obvious that other industry players are eating into their market shares.

Samsung threatens Apple’s Tablet Market Dominance

While Apple is still the dominant brand in the tablet world, Samsung is working hard to dethrone it. The Q1 2014 results showed that iPad sales dropped to less than a third of all the tablets sold in that period. In Q1 2013, the company had more than 40 percent of the tablet market in its grip. Only Samsung made substantial gains in the global tablet market, rising from 17.5 percent a year earlier, to 22.3 percent in Q1 2014. This represents tablet shipments which rose from 8.5 millions to 11.2 million units. So while Apple’s CEO Tim Cook still believes iPad has a great future, the company needs to worry more about Samsung, which is literally poaching its customers.

Mobile Advertising

Apple is not just losing its tablet market; almost all its businesses are under pressure. Until recently, Apple’s iOS was the leading operating system for mobile advertisers since it delivered not only the quality and a glossier platform with deeper engagement, but also a large target audience. Of all these four primary factors, the Google’s Android platform is now at par with iOS on two and has surpassed it in one.

According to Opera Mediaworks data, the traffic that resulted from 64 billion ads supplied to 500 million Smartphone and tablet users, 42.83% are Android users and 38.17% are from iOS. This was previously 31.26% and 44.53% respectively. However, on monetization of these users, iOS still leading with 52.7%, up from the previous 49.23%; Android on the other hand stands at 33.46, up from the previous 26.72%.

Conclusion

Google’s Android platform is an open source used by numerous developers, but iOS is only available to Apple. The number of developers at Apple cannot outwit the thousands of developers working on the Android platform. This is why the Apple’s Smartphone and tablet mark has been gradually dropping down. While iOS is losing ground to Android, Apple still pockets the lion’s share of the revenues from advertisement, because it is going it alone as a technological giant in the Smartphone and tablet arena.