Apple Victory Shifts Power Balance

Apple’s sweeping court victory over Samsung cements its dominance of the wireless industry and could force carriers, and even Google to re-evaluate their product plans and strategies.

Interviews with jurors and legal experts reveal that the verdict in the patent dispute did much more than order the South Korean company to pay $1.05 billion to its Silicon Valley rival. The nine jurors here also sent a signal that companies need to be much more careful in incorporating basic design elements in their electronic devices, particularly those affecting the way gadgets look and feel. The verdict, which comes just weeks before Apple is expected to unveil its next iPhone, could complicate matters for wireless carriers already contending with Apple's market power. Apple has reaped more than $156 billion in iPhone-related revenue since 2007 and is now the world's most valuable company. Patent lawyers predict the jury's decision will likely ratchet up an already heavy flow of patent suits in the tech sector, and could open new ground for litigation. More courtroom warfare could raise costs to makers of smartphones and tablets and reduce the number of gadgets on the market—increasing prices to consumers, some lawyers and market watchers say. More companies are likely to emulate Apple's approach of using the court system to defend the shape and style of their products, said Alan Fisch, an intellectual-property lawyer at Kaye Scholer LLP who isn't involved in the case.