Halted: A judge in California has blocked US sales of Samsung's Galaxy Nexus smartphones
A U.S. judge upheld an injunction banning Samsung's Galaxy Tab 10.1 from sale in the country.
The news is a bitter blow for Samsung, blocking sales of a device that is the closest rival to Apple's iPad.
It is the third legal setback to the South Korean firm in just a week, as it braces for a make-or-break patent trial later this month with Apple.
Koh also slapped a pre-trial ban on sales of Samsung's Galaxy Nexus phone on Friday.
Apple and Samsung, the world's largest consumer electronics corporations, are waging legal war in around 10 countries, accusing each other of patent violations as they vie for supremacy in a fast-growing market for mobile devices.
U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California, rejected Samsung's request to lift her June 26 order to halt sales of the tablet, which runs on Google's Android and goes toe-to-toe with the iPad.
‘Samsung is disappointed with the court's decision that denied our motion to stay. We believe today's ruling will ultimately reduce the availability of superior technological features to consumers in the United States,’ Samsung said in a statement.
The district court is not the last chance for Samsung to get the injunction lifted.
Samsung has also appealed to a federal appeals court in Washington, DC, which has exclusive jurisdiction over intellectual property disputes.
An Apple spokeswoman reiterated the company's previous comment that Samsung's latest products look a lot like the iPhone and iPad.
‘This kind of blatant copying is wrong and, as we've said many times before, we need to protect Apple's intellectual property when companies steal our ideas,’ the spokeswoman said.
Samsung's rival to iPad has been banned from sale in America, after a judge handed Apple a victory in the two companies' long-running patent battle
‘The impact on Samsung is limited as shipment volume of Galaxy Tab 10.1 and Nexus are quite small,’ said Lee Sun-tae, an analyst at NH Investment & Securities.
‘Even if Apple wins an injunction request on Galaxy S III, Samsung will have plenty of time to get around it, as it normally takes quite a long time for a court to process such requests.’The two companies have been locked in a battle over several continents over Samsung's Galaxy tablets and smartphones.
Apple has waged an international patent war since 2010 as it seeks to limit the growth of Google's Android system, the world's best-selling mobile operating platform.
US District Judge Lucy Koh said Apple 'has shown a likelihood of establishing both infringement and validity.'
Yesterday the U.S. District Court of Northern California said that the Galaxy Nexus smartphone 'likely' infringes four patents held by Apple Inc., including a patent used in the 'Siri' voice-activated assistance available in the iPhone 4S.
'Apple has clearly shown that it is likely to suffer irreparable harm in the absence of preliminary injunctive relief,' Judge Lucy Koh wrote in the ruling available online.
She ordered Apple to post a $96 million bond - an estimated damage sustained by Samsung from the temporary sales ban - in case the iPhone maker loses to Samsung in a later trial, scheduled for 2014.
The sales ban in the United States will be effective immediately when Apple posts the bond.
The Galaxy Nexus lawsuit is one in a series of legal battles between Apple and Samsung.
The two world's largest makers of smartphones together claimed more than half of the global smartphone market in the first three months of this year.
Samsung and Apple have been embroiled in multiple lawsuits in Asia, North America and Europe since April 2011 when Apple accused Samsung of copying its iPhone and iPad.
Samsung shot back with claims that Apple is using its mobile technology without permission.
Samsung's Galaxy tablets are the main rival to Apple's iPad - helped by the hit 'mini tablet' Galaxy Note (pictured)
The latest order from the Californian court follows Koh's decision on Tuesday to temporarily block the sales of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet computer in the United States.
But it is 'the first serious blow' Apple has dealt to Samsung and Google Inc., said Florian Mueller, a Germany-based patent analyst.
The Galaxy Tab 10.1 was released more than a year ago and accounts for a small portion of Samsung's mobile sales.
The Galaxy Nexus smartphone was launched in the U.S. market in December 2011.
The Nexus is also the first smartphone to be powered by the most recent
Android operating system called 'Ice Cream Sandwich,' which includes a unified search feature that lets users search information stored in various locations with a single input.
As a result of the sales ban, Samsung and Google's 'co-developed flagship device for the current generation of Android will have to be stripped of some or all of its Siri-like functionality,' Mueller said in an emailed response.
Samsung said it is disappointed with the court order and will take all legal measures.
'We are currently working closely with Google to resolve this matter, as the patent in question concerns Google's unified search function,' said Nam Ki-yung, a Samsung spokesman.
'Samsung will continue to take all available measures, including legal action to ensure the Galaxy Nexus remains available to consumers.'
Apple did not return calls seeking comment.
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