Nokia loses a patent infringement claim against Apple's Iphone

TOY MAKER FOR THE WELL HEELED, Apple has emerged victorious in one of its many courtroom battles against Nokia over alleged patent infringement.

Apple won a US International Trade Commission (ITC) ruling against Nokia, which says that Apple did not infringe on five Nokia patents with the Iphone. While the ruling was handed down by Judge James Gildea in favour of Apple, it still has to be reviewed by a six-member commission. The full commission has the power to ban imports of products that infringe patents.

Nokia had been claiming that Apple infringed its patents in the areas of cameras, battery life, touch-screens, speakers and messaging. The Finnish phone firm was gunning for a ban on Iphone imports to the US.

Judge Gildea's reasoning for the decision will be made public after both companies have the opportunity to redact confidential business information. Nokia has told Bloomberg that it does not agree with the decision that there has been no violation, but will wait until it sees the details of the ruling before taking further steps.

Apple has similar patent infringement claims against Nokia that are being looked over by ITC Judge Charles Bullock. Judge Bullock is expected to hand down his verdict in June.

It is unlikely that either Apple or Nokia will give up these patent battles easily. For Nokia it might be the easiest way to make money from the smartphone market, because it certainly isn't making much by selling smartphones itself. µ