Samsung Barred From U.S. Nexus Phone Sales in Apple Suit

Samsung Electronics Co. (005930), the world’s biggest maker of mobile phones, was barred from selling its Nexus smartphone in the U.S. by a second court ruling this week in its global patent dispute with Apple Inc. (AAPL) (AAPL)


The ruling by U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California, follows her June 26 order blocking U.S. sales of Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 computer in the patent and trademark- infringement lawsuit over smartphones and tablets. On June 7, Koh expedited evidence sharing for Apple’s bid to block sales of Samsung’s newest Galaxy smartphone, the Galaxy S III.

“Although Samsung will necessarily be harmed by being forced to withdraw its product from the market before the merits can be determined after a full trial, the harm faced by Apple absent an injunction is greater,” Koh said in her ruling yesterday. “Apple’s interest in enforcing its patent rights is particularly strong because it has presented a strong case on the merits.”

The world’s two biggest makers of high-end phones have accused each other of copying designs and technology for mobile devices and are fighting patent battles on four continents to retain their dominance in the $219 billion global smartphone market. After rejecting Apple’s repeated requests for injunctions blocking sales of Samsung products, Koh, following an appeals court ruling in Apple’s favor, has granted Apple two important injunctions this week.

‘Big Deal’

“It’s a big deal,” said Carl Howe, an analyst with Yankee Group, a Boston-based technology research firm. “Samsung is perhaps the best and most successful challenge to Apple in the smartphone business, so to win an injunction against your biggest competitor is pretty profound.”


Taken with the earlier ruling on the Galaxy Tab, he said, “It does imply that there will be problems for Samsung.”

Samsung accounts for 29.1 percent of global shipments of smartphones, according to market research firm IDC. Cupertino, California-based Apple is second with 24.2 percent, IDC said.


Apple has sought to bar as many as 25 Samsung smartphones in addition to the Nexus model covered by yesterday’s ruling, including the latest, the Galaxy S III. The Nexus phone was the first smartphone to run Google’s Android version 4.0.