Samsung Says Apple Cribbed First

Samsung claims pinch-to-zoom was stolen by Apple from Mitsubishi in the first place. Everything's derivative!

As the end of the epic soap opera that is the Apple (AAPL) v. Samsung (005930) trial draws near, Samsung's turn at the plate kicked off on Monday evening with some interesting events. Apple had gone straight for the jugular with its arguments, stating that Samsung knowingly stole its technology and designs by meticulously examining each key element of the iPhone's UI and ripping it off in its own products. Rather than get right to denying any wrongdoing, Samsung on Monday decided to take a different approach — prove Apple's technology patents are not valid because they're stolen to begin with.

To start things off, Samsung targeted Apple's pinch-to-zoom patent, which the Cupertino, California-based company claims is being infringed upon by a number of Samsung smartphones and tablets. Via Fortune, livecoverage of the trial from San Jose Mercury News describes the courtroom events surrounding one of Samsung's first key pieces of evidence: A giant table.