Samsung faces EU heat on patents

The European Union's anti-trust watchdog says it is investigating whether Samsung Electronics is trying to illegally prevent competitors from using key patents for mobile devices, including Apple's latest iPad. The European Commission said yesterday it suspects Samsung of not giving other companies fair access to patents it holds on standardised technology for mobile devices — despite committing to do so in 1998. Tablet war A spokeswoman for the Commission said the probe also affects tablets such as Apple's newest iPad, which includes the standardised wireless technology. The Commission said that Samsung last year sought legal injunctions against other device makers in several EU states, alleging patent infringement. The probe comes just as Samsung is locked in a battle with Apple over whether its Galaxy tablet too closely resembles the iPad.