Samsung Still Impressive After Apple Defeat

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- It's been almost three weeks since tech giant Apple (AAPL) won a patent suit against rival Samsung, convincing a group of trial jurors that the South Korean electronics giant had ripped off (among other things) smartphone designs by Apple.

It's penalty: $1 billing dollars. What's more, there remains the possibility that the penalty can triple by virtue of the fact that Samsung's actions were considered deliberate.

Speculation swirled as to who Apple was really after during the trial. Though Samsung served as the opponent, Google (GOOG) was said to be the actual target. With the result going in Apple's favor, one interpretation is that Microsoft (MSFT) just might have earned an indirect victory.

While that remains to be seen, the brunt of the damage was in fact absorbed by Samsung as its stock fell 7.5% the very next day. However, today, as it seems that the stock has done a better than adequate job of forgetting that it did in fact lose the case, I can't help but to think that investors grossly overreacted.

As an Apple shareholder, I don't mind admitting that I am also an admirer of many things Samsung: TVs, washers and dryers, refrigerators, earth movers, etc. In fact, it even competes head on in the realm of semiconductors against chip giant Intel (INTC). Its portfolio of products spans various businesses and industries while being sold on every continent.

So although the company is taking a slight hit on its smartphone business, it is far from being a one-trick-pony such as Nokia (NOK) or Research In Motion (RIMM).

Though Apple has since listed several smartphones that it would like to have Samsung prevented from marketing, that case won't be heard until (at least) December.

This is on top of Samsung's lawyers appealing the initial $1 billion penalty. As much as Samsung would love to have avoided the outcome, $1 billion might be considered a "drop in the pan" for a company with its streams of revenue -- particularly one that is now the top-selling handset manufacturer in the world. What's more, there is reason to suspect that Apple may not see 1 penny of that payment for quite some time -- if at all. That's just now how the process works.

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