Apple Wants Samsung Data To Prove iPhone Users Can Switch — DOJ Says Timing May Be The Problem
Apple is trying to bring Samsung into its US antitrust defence, but the US Department of Justice is basically saying: bro, you might have waited too long.
The case centres on Apple’s argument that iPhone users are not trapped inside its ecosystem because they can move to Android if they want. To support that point, Apple recently asked a US court for permission to obtain internal documents from Samsung’s parent company in South Korea.
Why Samsung? Simple. If Apple wants to prove that iPhone owners can realistically jump to Android, data from the biggest Android phone maker in the world could be useful. Samsung likely has internal information around customer switching behaviour, device migration, and how users move between platforms.
But the DOJ is pushing back on the timing.
According to Android Authority, the DOJ has responded in a court filing by arguing that Apple has long known Samsung would matter in this case. The issue, from the DOJ’s side, is that Apple only made this request after months had already passed.
That matters because getting internal data from Samsung’s South Korean parent company is not as simple as sending an email and waiting for a PDF. The DOJ says Apple’s route involves an international legal process under the Hague Convention, which can be slow and complicated.
In plain English: even if the court allows Apple to request the Samsung documents, there is no guarantee the material will arrive before the current discovery period ends.
The DOJ is not necessarily saying Apple should be blocked from asking Samsung for data. Its main point is about the schedule. The agency told the court that Apple should not be allowed to use this request as a reason to delay deadlines or push the trial timeline.
If Apple gets approval and the documents arrive too late to help, the DOJ’s position is that Apple has to live with that risk.
For Malaysia and SEA readers, this case is worth watching because the iPhone-versus-Android debate is very real here. A lot of us choose phones based on price, camera quality, gaming performance, battery life, resale value, family ecosystem, banking app support, and yes, whether our friends are all on iPhone.
In Malaysia especially, switching is not just about buying a new phone. It can mean moving WhatsApp backups, photos, app purchases, accessories, smartwatches, cloud storage, payment setups, and sometimes even your whole family tech setup. So when Apple argues that users can freely switch, regulators are looking at whether that is true in practice — not just technically possible.
The Samsung angle also matters because Samsung is one of the most visible Android brands in this region, from budget A-series phones to flagship Galaxy S and foldables. If any Android company has useful data on whether iPhone users actually cross over, Samsung is an obvious place to look.
Still, the DOJ’s message here is sharp: Apple can try to prove its point, but it should not slow the entire case because it started chasing key evidence late.
For now, the court still has to decide what happens with Apple’s Samsung data request. But the bigger question remains the spicy one: are iPhone users really free to leave, or is Apple’s ecosystem sticky enough that switching feels like a major headache?
Source: Android Authority
