Apple Wins Long-Term Protection from Ban on Sales of 3G-Enabled Devices in Germany

As far as you remember, in December Motorola win a preliminary injunction against Apple in Germany which has resulted in banning on sales of Apple’s 3G-enabled products such as the iPhone and cellular-capable iPad models in the country. But a few hours later after the ban granted on such products, the court temporarily suspended enforcement of the injunction.

And now FOSS Patents reports that the court has ruled that Motorola can not enforce the injunction for the duration of Apple's appeal in the case that could take as long as a year or more, therethrough Apple is no longer at risk of having its products removed from sale.

The Karlsruhe Higher Regional Court ("Oberlandesgericht Karlsruhe"), the appeals court within whose circuit the Mannheim Regional Court is based, decided today that Motorola Mobility is barred from further enforcement of its standard-essential patent injunction against Apple in Germany at least for the duration of the ongoing appeal (which I believe will take a year, if not more). And while today's decision is only a summary and preliminary decision that MMI could overturn during the course of the full-blown appellate proceedings, this indicates thatApple's appeal is highly likely to succeed -- and even if it didn't, Apple could realistically resolve the problem with limited additional concessions.