Second Apple-Samsung Patent Trial Begins with Focus on Apple's 'Holy War', Advertising Envy, and Phil Schiller

Samsung and Apple's second patent trial started earlier this week with jury selection and opening arguments by both Apple and Samsung. Phil Schiller also took the stand as Apple's first witness in the trial, which started in earnest on Tuesday.


Among the volume of internal documents provided in the case, The Wall Street Journal highlights emails from Apple founder Steve Jobs that reveal his commitment to beating Android, calling the competition a "Holy War" with Google.

Jobs outlined this "battle" in an October 2010 email to 100 employees prior to the company's annual retreat. Jobs said in the email that "Apple is in danger of hanging on to old paradigm for too long (innovator's dilemma)" and notes that "Google and Microsoft are further along on the technology, but haven't quite figured it out yet." This characterization is favorable to Samsung as the company attempts to involve Google and Android in the patent infringement case.

As part of its opening statement in the case, Samsung outlined its plans to share internal Apple documents that suggest Apple was taken aback by Samsung's edgy marketing campaign that characterized the company's Galaxy devices as "the next big thing." (via The Verge)

"We will show you internal Apple documents, documents that haven't been made public before, and showed how Apple was really concerned about competition from Android, and in particular Samsung," John Quinn of law firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, which is representing Samsung in the trial, told an eight-person jury. "This new, edgy marketing strategy ... it drove Apple crazy."

Following opening arguments by Apple and Samsung, Apple executive Phil Schiller testified in court on behalf on Apple, discussing, as he did in the first trial, the risks the company took as it successfully released both the iPhone and iPad before its competitors, reports Computerworld.

"We wondered what could come after the iPod," Schiller said. "We wanted to try and invent that future rather than let it happen to us."

Schiller also reminded jurors that Apple wasn't always the leader in the mobile market and had a long learning curve to get where it is now.

"Apple really only had two products at the time: the Mac and iPod," he said, reminding jurors of a time before Apple was the phone and tablet powerhouse it is today. "We hadn't made a phone. We didn't know about radios and antennas and all the things that make up a phone."

Schiller remained on the stand for over two hours before his testimony ended for the day. Schiller is expected to return on Friday, with Samsung continuing to question the Apple executive when the trial resumes.