Samsung accused of patent infringement yet again — this time over eye-tracking tech

LG can’t beat Samsung in smartphones, so it’s turning to something else: patents.

Above: The new Samsung Optimus G Pro.

The Korean electronics maker is going after Samsung over the eye-tracking technology found in their phones, according to Yonyap News. Samsung’s Galaxy S IV offers a feature called Smart Pause, which allows users to pause videos simply by looking away from the screen. That looks conspicuously like the Optimus G Pro’s Smart Video, LG says, which does just about the same thing.

Samsung has denied LG’s claims, arguing that its eye-tracking tech works differently from LG’s own. So no infringement done.

It’s a funny situation for both parties because, while LG says it has the patent to the technology, it’s Samsung that’s made the biggest effort to tell the world about it. (The move is also funny considering the overwhelming similarities between the Galaxy S III and Optimus G Pro, which could easily be confused as something Samsung itself created.)

Samsung, of course, is no stranger to being accused to coping its competitors — and neither is LG. The companies’ are just coming off an extended patent spat over the technologies in their displays. That feud ended relatively peacefully, but it’s clear that neither party has much interest in making a permanent truce.

Photo: Devindra Hardawar/VentureBeat