KT’s decision to bar internet access for Samsung’s Smart TV may end up in court. Samsung has hinted they may sue KT for compensation of damages as they enforced an internet restriction for apps and services accessing from Samsung Smart TV.

A long-term infliction of such unfair treatment could incur substantial damages on our consumers, which is why we are planning to swiftly resolve the issue through a possible compensation lawsuit.

KT is the largest internet service operator in South Korea and about 250,000 Smart TV owners will be affected with the decision.

Korea Telecommunications Commission (equivalent to FCC) said that KT’s move was inappropriate and may penalize them for violating laws.

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The Dusseldorf Regional Court today gave the final verdict with respect to sales ban on Galaxy Tab 10.1N filed by Apple. The court concluded that unlike the original Galaxy Tab 10.1, the Galaxy Tab 10.1N differs in looks from the Apple iPad and is allowed to sell in the German market.

The Galaxy Tab 10.1N now sufficiently differs from the form Apple has registered as a design right. You can no longer talk of a quasi-identical copy.

The court’s verdict is pretty much the same as the preliminary assessment they did in December.

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KT in South Korea has announced that they’ll cut off internet access to apps on Samsung’s Smart TVs from tomorrow. The move is a result of excessive bandwidth used by apps on these internet-enabled TVs.

KT is the largest fixed-line operator in South Korea and there are about 1 million Smart TVs in Samsung’s domestic market.

Excessive electricity use can cause a wide scale blackout, as we have experienced in September last year. Likewise, over-burdening the internet inevitably hurts other users.

Completely cutting off the access seems a bit harsh. Perhaps, KT and Samsung could work a way around or throttle internet speed when accessed from a Smart TV.

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Samsung generally comes in a big way at major trade shows but it will be different at this year’s Mobile World Congress (MWC). Samsung confirmed to PCMag that they won’t hold any press conference at the event.

However, as the site points out, that does not mean we won’t see new products from Samsung. There’s a possibility of new tablets and a few phones but they won’t be substantial as a flagship device.

Samsung recently confirmed to unveil Galaxy S III at a dedicated event and not at MWC.

Samsung had a great 2011 when it came to television sales and it seems they’re expecting a better 2012. At the launch of ES8000 in South Korea, Samsung expects its television sales to surpass 50 million units this year with almost 25 million are expected to come from sales of internet-enabled Smart TVs.

Samsung’s Kim Hyun-suk also said that they’re planning to introduce affordable lower-end models. Samsung is currently “optimizing production costs and retail prices and will be ready for sale in couple of months.”

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Valentine’s Day maybe a week away but Samsung has decided to celebrate the day a week before and after by giving away a bunch of paid apps for free to its users. Samsung is gifting its bada or Android users with free paid apps till February 21 and also a chance to win a $5 app voucher, in case a user downloads all the apps.

You can head down to Samsung Apps to check out the apps and supported devices as Samsung is also offering discounted apps for some devices.

Samsung Apps

Thanks, Mark!

Samsung Electronics revealed in a filing to the Korea Stock Exchange that they may take over the OLED and LCD panel producing unit – Samsung Mobile Display (SMD). SMD is an unlisted subsidiary which was formed by Samsung Electronics and Samsung SDI with the Electronics division holding a stake of more than 60 percent.

Samsung Electronics says the merger will help them to “improve the synergy” as they’re the biggest customers of SMD’s OLED panels.

SMD produces around 90 percent of the world’s AMOLED displays.

Source|Via

Samsung has unveiled its Smart Touch Remote Control that will improve the user experience of 2012 range of Smart TVs. The remote boasts something called as Edge User Interface that keeps out the clutter you’d normal find on a conventional remote control and integrates minimal keys – volume, channel. frequently used channel etc.

Moreover, the remote control features a trackpad so as to enable easier web browsing on the Smart TV and comes with voice recognition which will be supported in the ES8000 Smart TV.

The remote will work with Samsung TVs, set-top box and Blu-ray player.

UPDATE: Samsung issued a statement to CNN saying they did not produce or approved the ad.

Samsung Electronics is aware of a recent news report in Iranian media regarding an advertisement aired by HOT cable network of Israel,” Samsung said in a statement. This advertisement was produced by HOT cable network without Samsung’s knowledge or participation.

Samsung has got into hot water with an ad promoting Galaxy Tab 10.1. The ad produced by an Israeli cable TV station, Hot was meant for the Israeli market but the ad took potshots on Iran that didn’t go well with Iranian officials.

The commercial shows three men posing as women who use Galaxy Tab to trigger a nuclear explosion. The ad according to the Head of Majlis Energy Committee Arsalan Fat’hipou implies that Israel is a powerful country to nuke Iran’s nuclear facilities and scientists.

Fat’hipou also said that a mere apology to Iran will not be enough as the Korean company “must be accountable for producing the teaser.”

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Corning Incorporated, known for its Gorilla Glass made two announcements today with respect to Samsung. Corning has renewed its agreement with Samsung Corning Precision Materials (SCP) and the AMLCD division of Samsung Electronics (SEC) for five more years. Corning renewed its technology license agreement with SCP whereas renewed its long term supply commitment to SEC.

Meanwhile, Corning also entered into an agreement with Samsung Mobile Display (SMD) to manufacture glass substrates for OLED devices. The new business will be situated in South Korea and will develop products and solutions for OLED technology used in mobile devices to TVs. The venture will also supply OLED backplane glass substrates.