Litigation Wont Prevent Galaxy S III From Challenging iPhone
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The resulting intellectual property fight will likely tie up some product launches in Europe, but probably not in the United States. The reason isnt that judges in the U.S. understand patents or copyrights any better than their European counterparts, but rather that the U.S. system grinds along so slowly that Samsung could go through an entire product cycle before any kind of decision would be handed down on one side or the other. Furthermore, any decision would be stayed anyway while appeals go on for perhaps decades.
But during this sure-to-happen series of legal battles, the Galaxy S III is going to be giving Apple some serious competition. First of all, the S3 isnt from Apple, which for many people is all the reason they need. Second, itll be available from virtually any carrier, which means itll work whereever you are, something the iPhone does not do (I cant get a useful signal for an iPhone where I live or work, for example).
Adding to the complicated situation for Samsung is the fact that the U.S. introduction of the Galaxy S III is happening immediately after Apples World Wide Developers Conference, which starts June 11. While its by no means certain Apple will introduce the iPhone 5 during the conferences opening day, there are strong indications that it will. Apple usually announces a major product at the WWDC and the iPad 3 has already been announced this year.
If the iPhone 5 actually is announced on June 11, it may take a lot of the wind out of Samsungs sales. Or it may not. If, as has been rumored, the iPhone 5 is a lot more like the Samsung Galaxy Note than it is like the iPhone 4S, then there could be room for both in the market. At this point, Apples moves will have a strong influence on whether the S3 gets immediate traction.
But in a way, its also up to Siri. Apples personal assistant has a madcap quality to some of its answers that keep users attention planted firmly on this feature. So the most serious question about the S3 v. iPhone rivalry to come is whether S-Voice can tell a joke as well as Siri or whether it can discuss the meaning of life with actor John Malkovich as it does in a current widely distributed television commercial. Sadly, even Siri only gets the right answer (42) to that question part of the time and the answer is recognized only by fans of Douglas Adams Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy book series.
Wayne Rash is a Senior Analyst for eWEEK Labs and runs the magazine's Washington Bureau. Prior to joining eWEEK as a Senior Writer on wireless technology, he was a Senior Contributing Editor and previously a Senior Analyst in the InfoWorld Test Center. He was also a reviewer for Federal Computer Week and Information Security Magazine. Previously, he ran the reviews and events departments at CMP's InternetWeek.He is a retired naval officer, a former principal at American Management Systems and a long-time columnist for Byte Magazine. He is a regular contributor to Plane & Pilot Magazine and The Washington Post.
