SEOUL, Sept 21: South Korea´s Samsung Electronics said Friday it was considering adding Apple´s new iPhone 5 to a patent infringement case as part of a long-running global legal battle between the rival smartphone giants.
Samsung officials said the company would look into amending its side of an ongoing patent lawsuit in a US court to include the latest Apple gadget, which went on sale across Asia Friday and is due to hit US stores later in the day.
"Our company considers adding Apple´s iPhone 5 to the (patent infringement) case... but we cannot say when," a Samsung spokesman told AFP.
"Our decision will be made after our company has analysed the iPhone 5 to see what aspects of its device constitutes patent infringement."
South Korea´s Yonhap news agency quoted market watchers as saying Samsung may use its long-term evolution (LTE) patent portfolio to attack the iPhone 5 -- the first Apple phone to use the fourth-generation telecom network.
Samsung and Apple -- respectively the world´s number one and two smartphone makers -- have been at loggerheads over dozens of patent lawsuits in 10 nations, accusing each other of copying technologies and designs.
Last month, a California court ordered Samsung to pay $1.05 billion for patent infringement. The South Korean firm has appealed the decision.
Samsung, in a statement late Thursday, accused Apple of continuing to take "aggressive legal measures that will limit market competition".
It added: "Under these circumstances, we have little choice but to take the steps necessary to protect our innovations and intellectual property rights."
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