US vetoes ban on iPhones and iPads

The Obama administration on Saturday vetoed a US trade body ban on the import and sale of some Apple Inc iPhones and iPads, a rare move that overturned a legal victory for smartphone rival Samsung Electronics Co.

The decision was made by US trade representative Michael Froman to veto the ban on the Apple devices, over concerns that patent holders would gain "undue leverage" as also cause potential harm to consumers and competitive conditions in the US economy.

He added Samsung could continue to pursue its patent rights through the courts.

The last instance of a presidential's veto of an import ban ordered by the US International Trade Commission was in 1987.

The import ban was brought by the ITC in June. The move affected some older-model Apple iPhones and iPads after it came to light that the products infringed a Samsung patent.

The ban led to concerns among US antitrust enforcers and saw technology companies with opposing interests lobbying with the Obama administration on the issue.

The orders' critics questioned whether companies should be able to block rival products in cases involving patents that had been deemed to be essential to creating products based on key technologies overseen by industry standard-setting groups.

Meanwhile, Samsung expressed disappointment over the lifting of the ban Reuters reports. "The ITC's decision correctly recognised that Samsung has been negotiating in good faith and that Apple remains unwilling to take a licence," it said in a statement.

Welcoming the news and Apple applauded the administration "for standing up for innovation", adding "Samsung was wrong to abuse the patent system in this way."

The ITC ban targeted Apple products that were more than a year old, though certain models such as the iPhone 4 remained solid sellers. Unit sales of the device stand at around 100 million iPhones annually, but Apple does not provide a model-wise sales break down.

Apple and Samsung have been locked in a global patent war since 2010, bringing multiple lawsuits against each other over the design and functionality of their devices.

This ITC ban was specific to a Samsung patent on technology that allowed for simultaneous transmission of multiple services, simultaneously and correctly through 3G wireless technology.

Patents of the type are known as "standard essential patents" and they covered technology that was needed for compliance with standards set by industry organisations.