Samsung may have just suffered a massive blow in its battle against Apple, but the company was today handed a win by the Japanese courts. According to Reuters, Tokyo District Court Judge Tamotsu Shoji today ruled that Samsung's devices did not violate an Apple-owned patent involved in synching mobile devices and computers. The news outlet cites the judge as saying Samsung's products don't infringe on Apple's technological scope.
Last Friday, August 24, a nine-person jury awarded Apple $1.051 billion in damages, following the determination that Samsung had copied the iPhone and the iPad and infringed upon several of Apple's patents. Apple claimed that several of Samsung's products violated an Apple patent called "bounce back," essentially a visual effect which takes place when the user scrolls to the end of a list. The devices also infringed upon an Apple patent in which consumers use a pinch-to-zoom gesture when they want to magnify an image on their screen. Seven Apple patents total spanning physical and software were in question. Apple has already moved to ban a total of eight Samsung phones that were named in the suit.
Speaking about its Japanese victory, Samsung said it was pleased with the verdict.
"We welcome the court's decision, which confirmed our long-held position that our products do not infringe Apple's intellectual property," Reuters cites the South Korean company as saying.
Indeed, the victory once again reinforces the fact that the battle isn't over. Apple may have won the battle in the U.S., but the war certainly isn't over.
Samsung and Apple are scheduled to appear in court on September 20, when the former will attempt to have the June injunction against the Galaxy Tab 10.1 lifted. On December 6, the two will attend a hearing for Apple's request for injunction against eight of Samsung's phones.
