Apple has been prohibited from selling older iPhone models in China after a court ruled that the company had violated two patents held by chipmaker Qualcomm Inc, the Wall Street Journal reports.
The ruling covers iPhones 6, 7 and 8, but does not affect the latest models launched this year. Apple has said that it intends on appealing the decision and has already filed a request for the court to review the ruling.
According to Qualcomm, the Fuzhou Intermediate People’s Court in China found Apple had infringed on one patent related to photo editing and another to touch-screen swiping technology.
No details have been given on when the ban will take effect, but for now Apple says that its full portfolio remains on sale in the world’s largest smartphone market.
The ruling comes as Chinese authorities blast the US and Canada for detaining Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou on bank fraud allegations.
“The timing seems suspect to say the least,” Timothy Arcuri, analyst at UBS, told the Post. “This was a very convenient way to bring Apple into the fray in the same way the US government did with Huawei.”
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