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Washington - The US International Trade Commission on Friday blocked imports of some Samsung electronic devices following complaints by Apple that the South Korean company had violated its patents.
The ruling by the Washington-based US trade body was the latest in a long-running global legal battle over alleged patent infringement between the two smartphone and tablet giants.
The ITC ruled that Samsung had infringed two Apple patents -- numbers 949 and 501 - but cleared the South Korean company of charges that it had violated four more.
The import block is subject to a review by the White House and less than a week ago the Obama administration overturned an ITC ruling in a patent suit brought by Samsung that would have banned the sale of certain iPads and iPhones in the United States.
Samsung expressed disappointment with the latest ITC ruling.
"We are disappointed that the ITC has issued an exclusion order based on two of Apple's patents," the company said in a statement. "However, Apple has been stopped from trying to use its overbroad design patents to achieve a monopoly on rectangles and rounded corners.
"The proper focus for the smartphone industry is not a global war in the courts, but fair competition in the marketplace," Samsung said.
"Samsung will continue to launch many innovative products and we have already taken measures to ensure that all our of products will continue to be available in the United States."
