Samsung has won the latest stage of its patent saga with rival technology giant Apple after a Tokyo court ruled in favour of the South Korean company. The Japanese court case addressed only the synchronising technology that allows media players to share data with personal computers. The victory was therefore not comparable in scope to the much larger case won by Apple in the US last week. In the California trial, the court ruled that Samsung had illegally used Apple creations such as the 'bounce-back' feature when a user scrolls to an end image, and the ability to zoom text with a tap of a finger, in its products. The jury awarded Apple $1bn (£630m) in damages, and a judge is now evaluating Apple's request to have eight Samsung products pulled from shelves and banned from the US market, including popular Galaxy model smartphones. Samsung's latest model, the Galaxy S3, was not part of the US ruling. Judge Tamotsu Shoji took just a few minutes to reach his decision on Friday in Japan. He said he did not think Samsung's technology that allows media players and personal computers to share music files and other content infringed on Apple patents. The South Korean firm welcomed the ruling, saying it confirmed their "long-held position". The Apple lawyer present in the court declined to comment. Later on the company also said it had no comment, including on whether or not it intended to appeal. It is the latest of several lawsuits filed around the world involving the two tech giants battling it out over whether Samsung smartphones, which rely on Google Android technology, illegally used Apple designs, ideas or technology. Seo Won-seok, an analyst at Seoul-based Korea Investment & Securities, said the Tokyo verdict showed that the various cases may not be affected by Apple's major victory in California.
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