Samsung addresses EU concerns in antitrust probe - ( PH1L1PN33 )
By Andrew Longstreth and Karen Freifeld
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Samsung Electronics Co on Friday offered remedies that may settle a European Union probe over whether it breached antitrust rules through its use of patent lawsuits against rival Apple Inc.
“Samsung has agreed to propose commitments that will be market tested,” EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said in a speech in New York on Friday. “We hope to conclude this case.”
The details of the offer were not disclosed, and Samsung could not immediately be reached for comment.
South Korean-based Samsung attempted to settle with the European Commission earlier but the antitrust regulator had said it wanted more concessions.
Samsung and Apple, the world’s top two smartphone makers by volume and sales, are locked in patent disputes in at least 10 countries as they vie for control of the lucrative and fast-growing mobile market.
Samsung dropped injunction requests against Apple in Europe after the Commission filed charges against it last year.
The Commission also charged Google’s Motorola Mobility with a similar anti-competitive offense in May.
The Samsung case may help bring clarity to technology patents known as standard-essential patents, or SEPs, across the industry.
(Reporting By Karen Freifeld; Editing by Bernard Orr)
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