August appears to be Apple’s month, as it wins gets another lift from the US ITC (International Trade Commission).
The United States ITC upheld a decision it made in 2011 which found that Samsung had violated Apple patents in the production of handheld devices, including cell phones, tablets and media players.
For Samsung this is bad news, as the devices that are affected by the ruling will no longer be allowed to be sold in the United States.
President Barack Obama first has to review the ITC decision before determining whether the ban comes into force. Obama has sixty days to decide. Analysts doubt he will overturn ITC’s decision.
In a statement, Samsung expressed said it was disappointed at the ITC’s decision issuing an exclusion order based on two of Apple’s patents.
Samsung added:
“The proper focus for the smartphone industry is not a global war in the courts, but fair competition in the marketplace.”
Apple, which accuses Samsung of “blatant copying” of its products, hailed the ITC decision.
In a statement, Apple said:
“With today’s decision, the ITC has joined courts around the world in Japan, Korea, Germany, Netherlands and California by standing up for innovation and rejecting Samsung’s blatant copying of Apple’s products.”
ITC ruling applies to two Apple patents
- Touch-screen technology – ”Touch screen device, method, and graphical user interface for determining commands by applying heuristics.”. Often referred to as the “Steve Jobs patent”.
- Audio socket technology – “Audio I/O headset plug and plug detection circuitry”. A system for detecting which type of plug is received by a portable electronic device.
The BBC quoted Florian Mueller, an intellectual property analyst, who called the ITC ruling “another significant victory for Apple, especially because the famous Steve Jobs patent is a pretty foundational patent.”
The ITC turned down four other patient violations Apple wanted to be considered.
Earlier this month the Obama administration overturned a ban on older iPhone and iPad models being sold in America. This was despite the ITC ruling that Apple had infringed Samsung patents.