Apple attempts to halt Galaxy S3 from hitting US

In what seemed like an inevitable next step in Apple‘s patent-based offensive against any handheld electronic device not called an iPad or an iPhone, the Cupertino manufacturer has just made its most ambitious move yet.

In a report from Foss Patents, Apple are now targeting the Galaxy S3 over patent infringements in their ongoing lawsuit against Samsung. One of these is the same ‘data tapping’ patent that Apple used to stall HTC One series imports into the US. Apple are also looking into whether the S3 infringes on their ‘new slide-to-unlock’ and autocomplete patents.

In their motion, Apple are open about the massive popularity of the Galaxy S3, stating that ”[a]ccording to press reports, Samsung has already sold over nine million preorders of the Galaxy S III; indeed, the Galaxy S III has been reported to be the most extensively preordered piece of consumer electronics in history.”

In order to accelerate the process, Apple for now are only filing a request for preliminary relief against the Galaxy S3′s S-Voice service, which they claim is too alike to their own – slightly erratic – Siri voice recognition.

If the motion succeeds, then the Galaxy S3′s 21 June release date could be postponed until the matter is resolved. In a way, this’d be doing HTC a favour as well, as it’ll give their One X’s (which were also delayed by Apple) more time to sell before the S3 arrives.