Samsung to hire IRS investigator

Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest maker of memory chips and smartphones, said yesterday it is in talks to hire a senior official at the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS), a move seen as aimed at bolstering its place in the global patent war against Apple.

The company is negotiating employment terms with Victor Song, chief of IRS Criminal Investigation, for a senior position on the compliance team at the U.S. unit of Samsung Electronics, a spokesman said by phone.

Both Samsung and Song, who has helmed the IRS’ law enforcement arm since 2010, are positive he will join the company, the spokesman said.

The JoongAng Ilbo reported earlier that Song will begin his new position as Samsung’s vice president in January. His term at the IRS finishes at the end of this year.

Samsung’s move to tap the U.S. expert in financial crimes is expected to strengthen its position in a deepening legal row with Apple that has expanded to Europe, Asia and North America.

Another report in the Seoul Economics Daily said Song will set up a team within Samsung to collect information around the world to deal better with lawsuits against Apple.

The two tech rivals are locked in around 30 lawsuits against each other in 10 countries over smartphones and tablet PC patents.

Song is a third-generation Korean born in Hawaii.

Yonhap