, Asia's second-biggest smartphone maker, is using nine patents bought from last week to pursue new infringement claims against Apple Inc.

See? That, Google, is how you play ball, unfortunately.

, the Macalope's not going to give Google a hard time for suing with patents that it bought fourth- and even fifth-hand instead of, like Apple, ones that it was awarded for things it actually invented. Business is business. The Macalope just better not hear any more holier-than-thou proclamations about how noble Google has never sued anyone over patent infringement. Suing by proxy is still suing.

Besides, this may all be just a lead-up to the main bout: Apple vs. Google. What a media circus that would be.

The first punches are already being thrown. As Florian Mueller noticed last week, Apple is charging that . Hey, looks like Apple did make something lasting from that period! Maybe we owe John Sculley and Michael Spindler an apology.