“Apple’s lawsuit against one of its most critical suppliers, Samsung Electronics, does not mean that the complex relationship that lies behind two hit technology products is in immediate jeopardy,” Christian Oliver, Robin Kwong, and Joseph Menn report for The Financial Times, citing “people with knowledge of the situation.”
“The suit filed on Friday in a California federal court accuses Samsung, in its smartphones and Galaxy Tab tablet, of apeing the appearance of Apple’s iPhone and iPad, for which another arm of the South Korean manufacturer supplies chips and storage,” Oliver, Kwong, and Menn report. “But Apple has locked in long-term supply deals with Samsung and neither side would benefit from breaking that connection.”
Oliver, Kwong, and Menn report, “A public spat between the groups could lead to Apple seeking to replace the Samsung-made chip in the iPad 2 with processor chips from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, analysts argue. But they add that Apple would also run big risks to its supply chain by shunning Samsung.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Certainly Apple wouldn’t unduly risk their iOS device business without having carefully thought through the consequences of suing Samsung and the possibilities for alternate component suppliers/foundry options.
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