US Judge Richard Posner: Feud between Apple and Samsung has made patents ugly and problematic

As Apple, Google and Samsung continue their patent war, there are those in the community who aren’t amused with it. Among those wishing for a ceasefire is US Circuit Court of Appeals judge Richard Posner. According to Posner, the situation of patents and other matters related to intellectual protection has become ugly. He went further to describe patent wars as a “survival of the fittest between animals.”

“High profits and volatility made patent litigation attractive for companies looking to wound competitors. ”

“It’s not clear that we really need patents in most industries.. You just have this proliferation of patents. It’s a problem.”

According to Posner, companies filing for patent infringement aren’t really aiming to protect intellectual innovations. On the other hand, what patent litigation really does is simply threaten smaller companies who cannot afford costly lawsuits and the bad publicity that comes with it.

In related news, Samsung was able to secure a temporary lifting of the sales ban on its Samsung Galaxy Tab in the US. Samsung was able to secure a temporary reprieve from the US Court of Appeals regarding the patent infringement the company allegedly committed against Apple. The latter has yet to respond to the favorable decision obtained by Samsung.