One of Apple's controversial mobile patents, the "rubber banding" patent, has been invalidated by the United States Patent Office, Florian Mueller of Foss Patents reports.
The "rubber banding" patent is being rejected because it lacks novelty, says Mueller. Mikey Campbell at Apple Insider adds that the patent is being rejected because there is a similar patent from AOL, and it's not clear Apple added much with its rubber banding patent.
The "rubber banding" patent covers a rather minor action on Apple products. If you open Safari and scroll to the top of the page, then pull down, you see a background behind the web page. When you pull down on the page, it's like it's attached with a rubber band. This doesn't work only on Safari, it's across iOS apps. While it's a minor action, it's one of the small touches that makes iOS fun, and natural.
The invalidation is not final. Apple can still appeal the decision.
However, if the ruling stands, it would appear to impact Apple's $1 billion patent ruling over. Samsung has already submitted this news to the judge ruling over Apple's case with Samsung.
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