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Samsung fights to stay on US shelves as Apple calls for ban

Injunction hearing scheduled for September

Updated Now that the jury in the landmark Apple-Samsung patent trial has returned a $1bn verdict in Apple's favor, the next step will be to decide just which of Samsung's mobile phones will be permitted to be sold in the US.

Judge Lucy Koh has set a hearing on September 20 to discuss Apple's request to bar sales of Samsung products, Bloomberg reports, and the fruity firm is expected to file a one-page chart detailing exactly which models it seeks to block on Monday.

There were a total of 28 Samsung tablets and smartphones named in the patent lawsuit, although not all of them were found to have infringed Apple's patents in all circumstances.

Apparently, Samsung has chosen to see that as something of a silver lining. Even as Apple begins moving to block more Samsung products from the US, the South Korean device maker has taken this opportunity to request that a preliminary injunction against its Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet be lifted, since the jury found that particular device had not infringed Cupertino's design patents. Furthermore, Samsung is asking for damages based on the business it has lost due to the sales ban.

But Apple is having none of it. Instead, it has asked that the existing injunction be extended to the version of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 with 3G wireless connectivity, even though that version wasn't named in the original patent lawsuit, Bloomberg reports.

Apple has not been shy about requesting bans on Samsung products in the past, and Judge Koh has been amenable to its wishes. In June, the iPod maker won an injunction against the Samsung Galaxy Nexus handset due to a patent conflict with its unified search feature, something that was not an issue in the recent trial.

In the case of the Galaxy Nexus, Google and Samsung modified the phone's software so that it would not infringe Apple's patent, and the mobile maker is expected to make similar changes to others of its products to get around any future injunctions.

Neither is a sales ban based on the outcome of the trial likely to severely impact Samsung's revenue. Of the specific devices named in the patent case, most are no longer available in the US, with the notable exception of the various Galaxy S II models.

Samsung launched the successor to that device, the Galaxy S III, in May, and a Samsung spokesperson told Bloomberg that the verdict in the patent case would not affect its release schedule for any future products.

Although Samsung has strived to maintain a cheery face following its devastating courtroom defeat, however, investors didn't seem to be buying it, with the South Korean firm's stock price dropping nearly 8 per cent on the news. ®

Update

Apple has filed a motion with the court listing eight Samsung devices for which it seeks injunctions. They are the Galaxy S 4G, the Galaxy S II (AT&T), the Galaxy S II (Skyrocket), the Galaxy S II (T-Mobile), the Galaxy S II (Epic 4G Touch), the Galaxy S Showcase, the Droid Charge, and the Galaxy Prevail. The Galaxy S II (i9000), which was also named in the patent trial, was not included in the request.

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