Hours after Apple announced the launch of its iPhone 4S, Samsung Electronics is seeking preliminary injunction in France and Italy to block the sale of the new phone in those two countries. Report from Bloomberg and Cellular News indicated Samsung said its preliminary injunction requested in France and Italy would each cite two patent infringements related to WCDMA technologies. Bloomberg reported that Samsung said in an email statement it would soon file motions with courts in Paris and Milan seeking the ban, each citing two patent infringements on wireless telecommunications technology. According to Cellular News, Samsung also said that it believed Apple's violation as being too severe and that the iPhone 4S should be barred from sales. "Apple has continued to flagrantly violate our intellectual property rights and free ride on our technology. We believe it is now necessary to take legal action to protect our innovation," Samsung said in a statement. Samsung added that it plans to file preliminary injunctions in other countries after further review. “The move is going to be seen as part of the escalating battle between the two once-friendly companies, which has become ever more acrimonious in recent weeks due to their dispute over the design and patents within the Samsung Tablet devices,” Cellular News reported. Bloomberg said Samsung plans to file preliminary injunctions in other countries after further review. Apple unveiled the iPhone 4S in Cupertino, California this week and aims to start sales later this month. The move adds to legal disputes that began in April, when Apple claimed that Samsung’s Galaxy devices ‘‘slavishly” copied the iPad and iPhone. At stake is dominance in the fastest- growing segment of the $207 billion mobile-phone market, where Apple is competing against makers of handsets powered by Google Inc.’s Android operating system.