Patent law is a joke
Patent law, as currently implemented, is a joke, and defeats the purpose for which it was originally intended. When the legal system ignores "prior art", when original patent reviewers are insufficiently acquainted with the technology such that they can not distinguish "the obvious", and when the patent office resolves potential conflicts by "letting the courts sort it out", innovation, especially by those without deep pockets, will be stifled, and the only ones benefiting from the system are the legal professionals and patent trolls.
Based on the results of this particular case, it would appear that Apple is evolving from an innovative organization to a defensive "also ran". This hurts Apple's reputation far more than it hurts Samsung's. Rounded corners on an icon? How trivial! Is this what the new definition of "innovation" is evolving to?
What is really disturbing is the obvious attack on the Open Source community- Apple borrows freely from the community, with their PC operating system being a direct clone of BSD- they want the benefits without paying the price...
