Apple has won a preliminary injunction banning sales of Samsung Electronics' Galaxy Nexus smartphone in the US. This follows a similar court order on 26 June barring the Galaxy Tab 10.1 from the US market. Both products use Google's Android OS.
US District Judge Lucy Koh, in a 101-page ruling, wrote that Apple had made a strong case that Samsung was infringing its patents, the Wall Street Journal reports. She also concluded that Apple would suffer "irreparable harm" if an injunction weren't issued.
Koh ruled that Samsung had infringed an Apple patent covering technology for searching multiple databases, a function found in Apple's Siri voice-automated assistant programme used on the iPhone 4S. According to the court document, Samsung had argued that the patent was "a small part" of the overall product. The judge disagreed, saying it was not a minor feature, "but rather a substantial driver of consumer demand."
She also concluded that Samsung infringed an Apple search patent with the "Google Quick Search Box," which comes as a standard feature on Android devices since 2009. Samsung tried to play down the importance of the Quick Search Box, but Koh noted that Google's own documents said "search is a core user feature on Android." In addition, Koh wrote, the Quick Search Box has a voice search capability.
Samsung said it will pursue "all available measures, including legal action" to ensure the Galaxy Nexus remains on the market. The injunction will go into effect after Apple delivers a bond of about USD 95.6 million, which would cover any damages Samsung would suffer if the court later finds that the Galaxy Nexus phone didn't infringe Apple's patents. Apple posted the required bond for the injunction against Samsung's Galaxy Tab 10.1 the day after the injunction was handed down.
