Apple wins key round in Nokia fight over iPhone patents

Mobile phone patent war now swings in favour of Apple

Apple has won a trade ruling in the US over a patent complaint raised by Nokia about technology used in iPhone devices.

The US International Trade Commission (ITC) found that Apple had not violated the five Nokia patents. The case has been running for almost two years, but Nokia has held off on commenting on the latest result until the next stage of the proceedings.

"While Nokia does not agree with the ITC's initial determination that there has been no violation, we'll wait to see the full details of the ruling before we decide on any next steps," the company said in a statement to V3.co.uk.

This is just a US ruling, however, and the case is still up for debate in the UK and Europe. In total, 13 patents are said to have been infringed by Apple covering a range of smartphone features including touch control.

"The Nokia inventions protected by these patents include several which enable compelling user experiences," said Nokia vice president of intellectual property Paul Melin, as the firm started the action in Europe.

"For example, using a wiping gesture on a touch screen to navigate content, or enabling access to constantly changing services with an on-device app store, were both filed more than 10 years before the launch of the iPhone."