?Man is an idiot. He doesn’t know how to do anything without copying, without imitating, without plagiarizing, without aping. It might even have been that man invented generation by coitus after seeing the grasshopper copulate.?

– Augusto Roa Bastos.

My middle school Latin teacher once told me that “if you’re not cheating, then you’re not trying.” While it was obviously meant to be a joke that I never took seriously, it’s the only thing I can remember from his class. However, in the world of trademarks, patents, and intellectual property rights, there is only the slightest bit of room for humor – and Apple is clearly not in the laughing mood.

On Friday afternoon, Apple filed a 38-page lawsuit against Samsung, specifically targeting Samsung’s Galaxy line which, according to Apple, has “slavishly” copied the “look and feel” of the iPad and iPhone. Apple alleges that Samsung not only copied the look and feel of its devices, but also copied the applications and the packaging that the devices are housed in. The Wall Street Journal adds, “Apple is also embroiled in legal battles with companies such as HTC Corp., Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc., Amazon.com Inc., Nokia Corp. and Eastman Kodak Co. over products such as smartphones and software, some of whom it has sued and some of whom it has been sued by.”

While the South Korean company plans on defending itself against the lawsuit, the relationship between the two heavyweight consumer electronics companies may be impacted in the future as several Apple products contain computer chips manufactured by Samsung, including parts of the A4 and A5 processors which are found in iOS devices and Apple TV products.

It would be an extremely rare case for Apple to win something in court based on their argument that Samsung copied the “look and feel” of their devices, if anything, Apple is just trying to take a stand and make sure that it doesn’t lose its competitive advantage over its rivals who are taking business away. Let’s face it though; all electronics companies imitate the latest innovative product to hit the market (that’s just a part of what makes our economy a free market) and Apple just happens to be leading the way.

Photo by Vlad Savov via Engadget