Apple wins against Motorola in German slide-to-unlock patent case

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Motorola XOOM lockscreen

Apple has won an important victory against Motorola in its German patent case concerning slide-to-unlock screen gestures. The court decided that Motorola infringes on Apple's patent in two implementations, both of which concern slide-to-unlock gestures on smartphones.

With this victory, Apple has the right to enforce an injunction against the sale of Motorola's mobile devices in Germany. Motorola will likely appeal the decision, though it hasn't made such a motion to yet. A third implementation that covers circular unlock gestures on a tablet such as the Motorola XOOM was not awarded to Apple.

Apple has other patent lawsuits against Motorola that are going through the German court system now. Though the German decisions cannot be enforced in other parts of the world, such as the U.S., Apple's victory can certainly cause headaches for Motorola and its soon to be new owner, Google. [via FOSS Patents]