14 DAY TRIAL // The U.S. International Trade Commission has issued a ruling according to which Apple has infringed on a wireless Samsung patent and could be barred from selling certain iDevices.
At the heart of Samsung’s accusations are the iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, and all cellular iPads released by Apple until 2012, including the iPad 3 with Retina display (or “The New iPad,” as Apple marketed the tablet at the time).
The Samsung patent which Apple appears to be violating with the aforementioned devices describes “an apparatus and method for encoding/decoding a transport format combination indicator (TFCI) in a CDMA mobile communication system.”
An Apple spokesperson said the ITC ruling was disappointing, but added that it “has no impact on the availability of Apple products in the United States.”
Samsung for its part said, “We believe the ITC’s Final Determination has confirmed Apple’s history of free-riding on Samsung’s technological innovations.”
The ruling – if not vetoed by US President Barack Obama or blocked by an appeal, as the Wall Street Journal points out – shouldn’t affect Apple’s bottom line too much, as many of the "infringing" products are reaching their end of life.