Apple CEO Tim Cook was against the company's decision to launch a legal crusade against rival manufacturer Samsung, a Reuters report claimed this weekend.
Cook, who was CFO under the reign of Steve Jobs when the war began, was apparently concerned that the patent lawsuits could ruin the relationship Apple had with Samsung as a key component supplier.
The report said: "Tim Cook, Jobs' successor as Apple chief executive, was opposed to suin g Samsung in the first place, according to people with knowledge of the matter, largely because of that company's critical role as a supplier of components for the iPhone and the iPad. Apple bought some $ 8 billion worth of parts from Samsung last year, analysts estimate."
Sure enough, in November of last year, following a brutal legal battle throughout 2012, Samsung hiked the prices it charged Apple for processors by 20 per cent.
Numbers man
As a pragmatic numbers man throughout his Apple career, before becoming the top dog, it stands to reason that Cook would have been worried that war with Samsung could affect Apple's bottom line.
Jobs, however, was on a crusade of his own against Google's Android OS and the manufacturers who profited from it.
According to his official biography, he bel ieved that Android had "wholesale ripped off the iPhone" and was willing to go "thermo-nuclear" in order to bring the platform down.
Private appeals
The report added that Jobs had privately appealed to Samsung to change the designs of its Galaxy smartphones and tablets, which Apple asserted had "blatantly copied" the iPhone and the iPad.
The appeals fell on dead ears, the report said: "Jobs had run out of patience, suspecting that Samsung was counting on the supplier relationship to shield it from retribution."
The in-depth Reuters article also touches on the origins and the complex future of the Apple/Samsung relationship. It's definitely worth a read. Follow the hat-tip in the link below.
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