Samsung will ship 61 million smartphones in the current quarter, according to the Yonhap News Agency. That is well above forecasts, and the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 — the notebook that competes directly with the Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPad — is forecast to ship more units than expected. The reports says:

UBS estimated that Samsung Electronics will sell 61.5 million units of smartphones in the October-December period, up 5 percent from an estimated 58 million in the previous quarter. The number could reach as high as 63 million depending on the sell-through, or the volume that is actually sold to consumers.

The news means that Samsung has cemented its place as the top smartphone company. But it also probably means that Apple will increase is legal challenges over Samsung’s patents. Apple has had success with the actions in the U.S. but was less successful elsewhere. Apple can brag that its iPad 2 and mini sales have been at record levels. But, as long as it needs to resort to the legal system to keep its market share, the real appeal of its products could be masked.

Douglas A. McIntyre

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