Samsung wants depositions from Apple's top product designers

KOREAN ELECTRONICS GIANT Samsung is seeking depositions from Apple's top product designers in its legal battle against the firm.

Apple and Samsung have been in a bitter and widespread patent battle with lawsuits and countersuits going on in courts all over the world. Now Samsung's US lawyers are seeking depositions from Apple's top product designers Jonathan Ive, Douglas Satzger, Shin Nishibori and Christopher Stringer.

While Ive's role within Apple is well known, the other three designers all had significant input into some of Apple's most popular products, with Nishibori and Stringer appearing on several Apple patent applications. Interestingly, Satzger was last seen leaving Apple to work for Palm, though there is no word on whether he is currently working for HP, which bought Palm.

Samsung had originally planned for these depositions to happen in mid-October but filed another motion to delay, citing unavailability by Satzger, Nishibori, Ive and Stringer.

Samsung's request for depositions concerns only the US case between Apple and Samsung, which was originally filed in April 2011 and is expected to reach trial in July 2012. It will be interesting to see if Samsung manages to get Apple's creative gurus to somehow help its case. After all, it's highly unlikely that Ive and the others will say that the Iphone and Ipad were not products of their own creative minds. µ