France's Tribunal de Grande Instance decided Thursday that it would rule on Samsung's request for a local preliminary ban on the iPhone 4S on December 8. Samsung as expected argued that Apple's newer hardware violated its three 3G patents, but faced an increased defense from Apple. The American firm not only claimed Samsung was abusing standards-based patents but pointed to the European Commission's investigation of Samsung, claiming that its attempt to sue across Europe had been "so violent" that the EC had felt compelled to start an inquiry.
