Giant tech Apple has won a key patent case against rival Samsung at the US International Trade Commission (US ITC).
The US ITC upheld a 2011 decision which found that Samsung had infringed Apple patents in the production of mobile phones, media players and tablets.
The commission has ordered that Samsung devices affected by the ruling are banned from the US.
But that ban is on hold while President Barack Obama reviews the decision.
The President has 60 days to assess the US ITC’s findings, although analysts say he is unlikely to overturn the commission’s decision.
“We are disappointed that the ITC has issued an exclusion order based on two of Apple’s patents,” Samsung said in a statement.
“The proper focus for the smartphone industry is not a global war in the courts, but fair competition in the marketplace.”
Apple hailed the decision, placing it in the context of the tech giants’ global patent battles.
Apple has won a key patent case against rival Samsung at the US International Trade Commission
“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,” said the company.
The ruling applies to two patents.
The first is the so-called “Steve Jobs patent”, named after the company’s founder, which involves touch-screen technology.
The other patent is related to the audio socket on devices.
Four other patent infringements asserted by Apple were turned down by the US ITC.
Apple and Samsung have been fighting patent battles for years and across 10 countries.
The fight has escalated after Samsung overtook Apple last year to become the global leader in smartphone sales.
In Washington on Friday, a federal appeals judge heard testimony in a separate patent case between the two companies relating to a decision last year, in which Samsung was found to owe Apple $1 billion for infringing on patents.
That penalty was later struck to $450 million, but Apple appealed against the ruling. A verdict in that case has not yet been issued.
Separately, last weekend Barack Obama issued the first presidential veto in 26 years relating to a US ITC decision.
That veto overturned a ban on older models of Apple’s iPhones and iPads because of its “effect on competitive conditions in the US economy”.
Friday’s ruling is widely seen as a victory for the company.
“In a way. the noose is tightening. Apple step by step actually is gaining leverage against Samsung,” says Florian Mueller.
[youtube dUUHVpn1yns]
A court in Tokyo has ruled that Samsung Electronics did not infringe on patents held by Apple, which is the first victory for the South Korean company.
The patent was related to transferring media content between devices.
It comes after Samsung lost a key patent case in the US last week and was ordered to pay more than $1 billion in damages.
This is one of many cases brought to courts around the world by the two smartphone market leaders.
“We welcome the court’s decision, which confirmed our long-held position that our products do not infringe Apple’s intellectual property,” Samsung said in a statement.
Tokyo court has ruled that Samsung Electronics did not infringe on patents held by Apple
Tokyo District Judge Tamotsu Shoji dismissed the case filed by Apple in August, finding that Samsung was not in violation of Apple patents related to synchronizing music and video data between devices and servers.
On 24 August, a US court ruled Samsung had infringed Apple patents for mobile devices, including the iPhone and iPad.
The company has vowed to continue to fight against Apple saying it will appeal against the US ruling.
Apple is now seeking a ban on sales of eight Samsung phones in the US market.
On 6 December, US District Judge Lucy Koh, who presided over the initial trial, will hear Apple’s plea for an injunction against the Samsung phones, although it does not include the most recent Samsung phone to hit the market, the Galaxy S3.
Samsung Electronics shares have suffered their biggest fall in a single day in almost four years, after a US jury found the technology giant copied designs from Apple.
The South Korean company’s shares fell 7% in Seoul trading, the most since October 2008.
The company was ordered to pay $1.05 billion in damages to Apple, in one of the most significant rulings in a global intellectual property battle.
Samsung will appeal over the verdict.
Analysts said investors were worried that the ruling could affect revenues.
Samsung Electronics shares have suffered their biggest fall in a single day in almost four years, after a US jury found the technology giant copied designs from Apple
“An adjustment in the next few days is unavoidable as the damage amount was much bigger than market expectations, and there are further uncertainties, such as the possibility of a sales ban,” said John Park, from Daishin Securities.
Apple has said it will seek an injunction to block sales of Samsung products in the United States, a key market, at a court hearing on 20 September.
One of the biggest concerns for Samsung is whether Apple will now target the Galaxy S3, which was not included in the recent trial, as it focussed on older products.
The flagship product is Samsung’s best selling smartphone and if it is included in a US ban on sales that would give Apple a major advantage in the market, analysts said.
A nine-member jury in San Jose, California ruled on 24 August that Samsung had infringed Apple patents for mobile devices.
It was the most closely-watched of many similar patent disputes being contested in courts around the world between electronics manufacturers.
In recent weeks, a court in South Korea ruled that both Apple and Samsung had copied each other, while a British court dismissed claims by the American company that Samsung had infringed its copyrights.
