German court tosses second Samsung suit against Apple

Samsung Electronics suffered another legal blow after a German court today rejected its lawsuit against Apple, the second such dismissal in a week.

The claim, similar to another lawsuit, alleged Apple infringed on Samsung's patents related to 3G wireless technology. No reason was given for the dismissal by the Mannheim court in Germany, according to Florian Mueller, who runs legal blog Foss Patents.

"For Samsung, this outcome must be disappointing," Mueller said in his blog. "But the Korean electronics giant is known for its fighting spirit and unlikely to back down."

Samsung swiftly dismissed the loss.

"Today's ruling relates to only one of several patents asserted by Samsung in the Mannheim court, and it is of no indicative value as to whether Apple may be found to infringe other of Samsung's intellectual property rights in Germany," Samsung said in an e-mailed statement sent to CNET.

Apple wasn't immediately available to comment.

The lawsuits are part of a broader legal between the two companies that span multiple countries and courtrooms. The goal is to score a decisive enough legal victory in a major market, forcing the two sides to resolve their differences and come to terms on a cross-licensing agreement. So far, that has been difficult to achieve.

In fact, Samsung has other lawsuits pending in the Mannheim court.

"A ruling on an additional Samsung patent relating to telecommunications standards is due to be handed down by the Mannheim court in the next several weeks," Samsung said.

Beyond dueling in the courtroom, Apple and Samsung are increasingly fighting in the market for smartphone supremacy. While Samsung was the leading smartphone manufacturer in the third quarter, Apple retook the crown in the fourth quarter, thanks to the iPhone 4S.

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