>Not that I think it'll impact Apple's bottom line in any way. ha.
Half of Apple's income is from the iPhone. The Galaxy S phone is arguably cutting into the iPhone marketshare, as its one of the better Android phones out there and is a little cheaper and can be had on multiple carriers. I have a Vibrant on T-mobile and its a really neat piece of technology, so I can see why Apple is afraid of it.
Apple's take, imho, is that they'red damned if they don't do a patent attack and damned if they do, so why not? They don't give two shits about upsetting their loudmouth superfans nor about setting off a patent war that could potentially cripple the industry. They just need to worry about next quarters earning report.
I suspect these desperate measures are signs that Apple's massive growth is beginning to stagnate. Everyone who wants an iPhone probably has one and if Android continues to move in, then you won't have the growth you had in the past.