In a move exhibiting clever gamesmanship, today Nokia one-upped Apple in the much-watched patent fight between the two behemoths. Here is a recap of the fight so far: Nokia files a patent infringement suit against Apple claiming the iPhone infringes 10 Nokia patents; Apple counter-sues for patent infringement claiming Nokia products infringed 13 Apple patents related to GSM; Nokia spurs the U.S. International Trade Commission to start an investigation of Apple in light of Apple's alleged violations. And now, in a final punch, today Nokia filed yet another lawsuit against Appled in Delaware claiming the iPhone infringes 10 additional Nokia patents. 
All the legal wrangling will probably take at least a year to work out, since patent rocket dockets generally take about 12 months to a decision, assuming a settlement isn't reached before then. During the next year, however, Apple will have released at least one major revision to the iPhone, which begs the question of whether Apple will seek to design around the Nokia patents so as to render Nokia's lawsuit moot going forward. Another fact to note is that Nokia's share of the growing smartphone market has continued to decline with the rise of the iPhone. This has led some to characterize Nokia's lawsuits as the final throes of a smartphone player. The next 12 months will shed light on this question.
As a Florida patent lawyer that files a multitude of technology patent applications with the U.S. Patent Office each year, I follow patent enforcement proceedings such as these closely. This case illustrates that patents can be used both as a sword and as a shield. Apple fired back at Nokia with a patent infringement lawsuit of its own. This move puts Nokia at least partially on the defense, which allows Apple to potentially gain the initiative.
When asked about the value of patents, I always advise my clients that in addition to obtaining an exclusive right to stop others from making or using your technology, a patent is also a valuable tool for use against an adversary that asserts his patent rights against you. Companies know this and therefore having a patent portfolio can have a deterrent effect against intellectual property litigation. Much like the Cold War-era philosophy of Mutually Assured Destruction, a potential adversary may think twice about suing you for patent infringement if you have a portfolio of patents yourself, which can be used against him.
Thanks for this informative post, Mark. It will be interesting to see how this harsh legal fight will play out.