Apple has scored yet another important win against its biggest rival Samsung, in a patent litigation wherein the former had accused the Korean company of infringing patents by equipping features like ‘Slide To Unlock’, data detection and others in its smartphones.
Thrashing a lower court order by terming it an ‘abuse of discretion powers, A U.S. appeals court on Thursday said Apple should have been awarded an injunction barring Samsung from selling products that infringe its patents.
A lower court had earlier asked Samsung to pay damages worth $120 Million, but at the same time disallowing Apple, an injunction in the case, which was decided by a Jury in May 2014. The case involved Apple patents covering the iPhone’s slide-to-unlock, autocorrect and data detection features.
Announcing its judgement, the court said,
Apple does not seek to enjoin the sale of lifesaving drugs, but to prevent Samsung from profiting from the unauthorized use of infringing features in its cellphones and tablets.
The case has now been sent back to a federal district court in San Jose, California, which has been asked to reconsider Apple’s injunction.
The case however, is more than just a lawsuit for Samsung, and could potentially permanently dent its sales within the US. The Korean gia had earlier got relief, when U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in August, 2014 refused Apple’s request for a permanent injunction to stop Samsung from selling the infringing features on its smartphones in a Jury verdict last year.
However, with the U.S. Appeals court directing the federal court to reconsider injunction, it becomes extremely difficult for Samsung to survive in this market — and may potentially result in a massive wipe-out of its brand from the country.
Apple reiterated its previous comments about the case, saying “Samsung willfully stole our ideas and copied our products.”
In a related and rather primetime case, the Federal Circuit in May stripped about $382 million from a $930 million judgment against Samsung, which came up from a 2012 complaint by Apple against Samsung’s stealing of iPhone’s looks. Both the companies will now be negotiating final damages.
