French court dismisses Samsung's request for a sales ban on the Apple iPhone 4S before trial

Samsung's counter-lawsuit against Apple in France has suffered a setback after the court ruled it will not enforce a preliminary injunction against the iPhone 4S and other supposedly patent infringing products of Apple. This means that the iPhone can be marketed and sold freely, until the final hearings on Samsung's case against Apple, and the verdict.

Samsung has filed similar lawsuits also in Japan, Italy and Australia, about Apple eventually infringing on its patents related with 3G connectivity technology, whereas Apple claims it has approached Samsung to license the tech under FRAND terms, but the Koreans demanded "excessive" royalties.

The court in Australia recently lifted the sales ban against the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, so the legal tug-of-war between those two mobile industry behemoths continues, for the joy of the lawyers involved.

source: Reuters