Samsung Galaxy S3 Could Face a U.S. Ban; Apple Could Strike A Major Blow To Samsung

The mobile tech market is becoming the new "it" place to be. Manufacturers are scrambling to take advantage of the smartphone and tablet markets that have catapulted by Apple's success to lucrative profit margins. 

The two biggest players in the market, Samsung and Apple, recently ended a patent-infringement lawsuit which Apple won. And now it looks like Apple is going to add insult to injury by attempting to get Samsung's current star, the Galaxy S3 smartphone, banned in the United States on top of the $1 billion fine. The move could be a major blow to Samsung.

"Despite that lawsuit, Samsung has continued to flood the market with copycat products, including at least 17 new infringing products released prior to filing the original complaint in the instant action. Since then, Samsung has continued to release new infringing products, including its current flagship device, the Galaxy S III," reads Apple's legal complaint.

After the $1 billion fine was levied against Samsung, many analysts thought that in the long run the Korean company wouldn't be too hurt. It still had its flagship Galaxy S series and Galaxy Note series, and the company is diversified enough to take the financial blow. But a ban on the Galaxy S3 could be incredibly damaging to Samsung.

For starters, Apple is going to release the iPhone 5 in September. It will once again be the company to beat, and there's no other smartphone that comes close its popularity - other than the Galaxy S3. The Galaxy S3 sold over 10 million units in its first month in the United States, and has helped Samsung outsell Apple in the smartphone category almost two-to-one.

The Galaxy S3 is Samsung's front line warrior against the iPhone 5. Their Galaxy Note 2, while an impressive device, still caters to a much more unique creative phablet market. While the Galaxy S3 hasn't suffered any dips in sales just yet, you can bet that if a ban on the Galaxy S3 looks likely, consumers won't be rushing out to buy a product that will no longer be sold or receive support in the United States.

Samsung needs to fight this ban with all it's got. While I'm no legal expert, and cannot decide whether Samsung really is a willful patent-infringing company, there is one thing that is certain: Samsung needs its flagship phone to stay relevant against the iPhone 5, and  keep its main line of products free of legal and public critical scrutiny.