Apple/Samsung: patent nonsense - FT.com If only there were an app to help phone users and phonemakers" shareholders figure out what each twist in the patent battles means. President Barack Obama's overturning of a US International Trade Commission ban on some of Apple's products is a big deal in the world of patent policy but will not mean much for phone users or much financially to Apple and its opponent, Samsung Electronics. So why do the two persist with these battles? Look at the list of pending patent cases on the ITC's website and a depressing number seem to involve mobile phones and big brands. Mr Obama's decision has kept alive US sales of some very specific versions of the iPhone 3 and 4, and the iPad 2. This week, the ITC is due to rule on a complaint from Apple involving Samsung and rounded corners on phones - a point discussed at great length in a three-week court battle in California a year ago. Figuring out the financial implications of the battles is not easy. The costs, such as legal fees, are not disclosed but can only be enormous. The damage to opponents is paltry in comparison. Samsung risked perhaps 6 per cent of its net profits last year in the California court battle and its top-selling models were not involved. Mr Obama saved Apple from not being able to sell old models that while still profitable, no longer drive its impressive margins. Tellingly, the risk factors outlined in Apple's last annual report put as number two the danger that it could see its patents infringed and, at number eight, the risk that it might have done that to others. Samsung, meanwhile, included in its letter to shareholders the goal of nurturing its patent capabilities. More litigation can be taken as a given, it would seem. Both companies stress the importance of standing up to patent infringers. Fine, but shareholders must start asking whether these particular battles are still worth executives" time and company funds.