The next patent battle with Apple, set to begin in March, will be over technology found in more recent Samsung phones, like the Samsung Galaxy S III. (File/UPI/Molly Riley) |
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SAN JOSE, Calif., March 6 (UPI) -- A U.S. District Court has again ruled against Apple's request to permanently ban the sale of 23 Samsung phones found to have infringed on its patents.
Judge Lucy Koh, who presided over the original case involving the two technology companies, said that Apple "has not established that it is entitled to the permanent injunction it seeks." She did uphold $290 million in additional damages awards by a federal jury in November. This comes atop the $640 million from the original award that wasn't in dispute in this retrial.
Samsung said they will challenge the amount of damages, saying that it was "based on erroneous calculation methods." Samsung argues that they owe Apple only $52 million in additional damages.
The two companies have been locked in heated patent litigation since 2011, which ended in 2012 after Judge Koh awarded Apple $640 million in damages. In November an additional $290 million was awarded to Apple, but Apple in December sought a complete ban on Samsung phones, saying that monetary damages "are not an adequate remedy."
The battle now shifts to another trial set to begin in March, over a different set of patents used in more recent Samsung phones like the Samsung Galaxy III, despite meetings between Apple CEO Tim Cook and Samsung mobile chief Shin Jong-Kyun last month to reach an amicable solution.
Both Apple and Samsung have seen revenues slow down, with the rise of cheaper smartphones manufactured by Chinese smartphone makers. In 2013, Samsung's global smartphone market share was 31.3 percent, ahead of Apple's 15.3 percent, according to research firm IDC.
[Apple Inc. v. Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. et al.]
[Wall Street Journal]
[CNET]
