Motorola imports halted by patent ruling

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WASHINGTON, May 19 (UPI) -- U.S. technology giant Motorola Mobility Holdings suffered a legal setback this week, as a patent panel said it had overstepped a Microsoft Corp. copyright.

U.S. International Trade Commission upheld an earlier ruling that Motorola violated a patent held by Microsoft that allows mobile devices to synchronize calendars in phones and personal computers, The Wall Street Journal reported Saturday.

The Los Angeles Times reported that the ruling means Motorola will have 18 mobile phones run by Android systems, including devices called the Droid and the Blur, that it cannot import into the country without paying a fee of 33 cents per device.

The company, however, can reach a licensing agreement with Microsoft or change the software it uses in order to begin importing the devices.

In a statement, Microsoft said, "We will explore all options, including an appeal."

"Although we are disappointed by the commission's ruling that certain Motorola Mobility products violated one patent, we look forward to reading the full opinion to understand its reasoning," the company said.