Apple begins appeal in renewed bid to ban Samsung phones

Apple today took a step in trying to appeal a decision by a district court judge not to ban a number of Samsung phones in the U.S.

by Josh Lowensohn

December 20, 2012 1:21 PM PST Follow @Josh

Apple today told a U.S. district court judge in San Jose it would appeal her decision earlier this week not to ban sales of a number of Samsung phones.

Earlier this week Judge Lucy Koh denied Apple's bid for a sales ban on 26 Samsung products, saying that any infringing features were just part of a larger feature set, making a sales ban too broad. That decision meant Samsung can continue to sell those devices, which are mainly older models, in the U.S.

That sales ban effort was one of several following a jury verdict in August that found Samsung infringed on multiple Apple patents, and left the South Korean electronics giant with a tentative $1.05 billion in damages that is still subject to adjustments.

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the filing. Samsung declined to comment.

The filing comes a day after Samsung noted that one of Apple's key patents in the case was recently reexamined, with all 21 of its claims rejected by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. For the case between the two tech giants, only one of those claims was involved, and Apple has a chance to argue for its continued validity.

Still expected is a ruling from Koh that could change the damages. During the three-and-a-half-hour-long hearing earlier this month, Apple made its bid to increase damages while Samsung predictably argued to lower them.