Things aren’t looking great for Google’s Android in the legal world, as the little, green robot is facing another lawsuit. This time, Verical Computer Systems is suing LG Electronics and Samsung regarding Android app patents.
Vertical says that the LG Ally, the Samsung Galaxy Tab and most of the Galaxy S phones violate patents regarding “generating Web sites in an arbitrary object framework.” Vertical is looking for unspecified damages and an injunction on these products.
Samsung has quickly become one of the largest Android handset makers in the world, as it has sold more than 6 million Galaxy S smartphones. LG also plans to invest heavily in the little, green robot and leaked specs indicate that it will be bringing out some beastly phones with Google’s mobile operating system.
This is just the latest legal challenge for Google’s mobile platform, as the legal woes may become a liability for the little, green robot. Including the Vertical lawsuit, every major Android manufacturer is facing a legal assault over Google’s mobile OS – I’m talking Motorola, HTC, LG, and Samsung.
It’s not just the handset makers, as Google itself is being sued by Oracle over Java patents within Android. Google called the suit “baseless” and believes that the patents in question should be invalidated, but this lawsuit has the potential to derail some of the momentum Android has.
In the span of only a few years, Google has gone from having now presence in the smartphone OS space to being the top-selling OS in the United States and being the second most-used smartphone platform in the world.
Android may very well violate some legitimate patents and the lawsuits may just wind up being a way to force needed licensing agreements. Of course, you have to wonder if competitors are also just trying to use these lawsuits as roadblocks to stop Google’s momentum in the mobile space.
[Via Electronista, photo]
