In the everlasting patent war between Samsung and Apple, the US-based manufacturer seems to have recently obtained a very important victory.

Judge Thomas Pender from the United States International Trade Commission (ITC) has ruled that Samsung devices infringe on a text selection patent owned by Apple, a feature that’s available on iPhones and iPads. Another Apple claim, one that sought injunction for Samsung’s use of a patented technology for detecting microphones when they are inserted in the headphone jack, has been rejected.

The decision is appealable, but if Samsung is to lose the appeal in front of the full commission as well, Apple is entitled to requesting an US import ban for most smartphones and tablets in the Samsung Galaxy and Samsung Nexus lines.

The final decision is expected to arrive at some point during August and it is yet unknown if Samsung can avoid the potential import ban via a software update that would change the way text selection is made. We’ll keep you up to date with any further developments!