Samsung plans chat tool

Samsung Electronics said today it would launch a mobile instant messaging tool in its latest push to attract more consumers to its handsets and challenge rivals such as Apple and BlackBerry maker Research in Motion (Rim).

The new service, called ChatON, will be available from October and preinstalled in Samsung's feature phones as well as smartphones running on its own bada operating system and Google's Android software, it said.

With the move, Samsung enters an already crowded mobile messaging market, which telecoms carriers fear will hit revenue from profitable text messaging services.

Apple plans to roll out iMessage, enabling the millions of iPhone and iPad users to send messages to one another over the Internet at no cost, and Rim aims to leverage the popularity of its BlackBerry Messenger with a new music service.

Samsung's messaging tool will work across all major smartphone platforms including iPhone and BlackBerry and will allow users to send text, images, and hand-written notes, as well as chat in groups and share video clips.

It plans to expand the offering to all Android-based smartphones and tablets, and it will also be available for download to consumers using rival Android, iPhone and BlackBerry models.

Meanwhile, the company said it would delay the launch of its latest Galaxy tablet computer in Australia until after a court ruling in late September on its ongoing global patent dispute with Apple.

Samsung and Apple have been locked in acrimonious battle over smartphones and tablets patents since April as Apple seeks to rein in the growth of Google's Android phones by taking directly aim at the biggest Android seller, Samsung.

The sales delay in Australia is the latest setback for Samsung after Apple won an injunction in a Dutch court last week to ban sales of three of Samsung's smartphone models in some European countries.

A Germany court also said last week that Apple's injunction request to stop sales of Samsung's Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet in the country will remain in place until September 9th when it delivers its ruling.

Samsung said today it has agreed to delay the launch of Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Australia pending the court's decision in the week of September 26th and said it will lodge the cross claim through the Australian court in the coming days.

"Today, Samsung informed the Federal Court of Australia it intends to file a cross claim against Apple Australia and Apple regarding the invalidity of the patents previously asserted by Apple and also a cross claim against Apple regarding violation of patents held by Samsung by selling its iPhones and iPads," Samsung said in a statement.

Samsung first delayed the launch of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 earlier this month following an agreement with Apple at an earlier court hearing.

Apple, which has conquered the high end of the phone market with its iPhone, has argued that Samsung had infringed on its patents and the Galaxy line of products "slavishly" copied its design, look and feel. It is fighting legal battles in the United States as well as Europe, South Korea and Australia.

Samsung has counter-sued, arguing Apple infringed its wireless patents.

Reuters