Here we go again. Last year with Apple's iOS 5, many a Windows Phone fan were up in arms over the company's blatant rip-off of Microsoft's camera app. The hallmark feature being the ability to take a photo, them swipe left to jump instantly into a filmstrip view of your camera roll. We discussed this a while back, which was made even more interesting by Microsoft's ownership of a very specific patent for Windows Phone's "integrated viewfinder".

Fast forward to today, and Windows Phone fans are pissed off once again because Google has copied the feature as well. Unlike Apple though, they've almost completely cloned the entire interface including the pinch-out filmstrip view. PocketNow recorded a video demoing a few features from the new Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean" update, and during the clip at 5:14 we can see the 'new' camera app in action.


Interestingly enough, Apple has proven that even Google's Nexus phones aren't beyond the reach of the patent wars, as demonstrated by a judge's decision for a U.S. sales ban of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. So it's possible that Microsoft could actually take anyone who uses the new Android 4.1 stock camera interface to court. If we were to speculate further, Microsoft may pursue ASUS over this because they're the manufacturers behind the new Nexus 7 tablet (which comes with Android 4.1 preloaded). Plus to our knowledge, the company does not have a patent agreement with Microsoft yet making them likely targets. They probably can't go after Google for the feature though, because they don't claim ownership of the software since it's under an open source license.

Anyway, that last paragraph is mostly speculation because I'm not a lawyer nor have I studied anything related to law. Still, it's a fascinating possibility and one that proves competitors are paying close attention to what Microsoft is cooking up in Windows Phone.

Via: PocketNow