Apple Scores a Knockdown in German Round of Patent Fight With Motorola

Apple has managed another victory in its sweeping smartphone patent battle, this time against Google’s Motorola Mobility unit.

A German court ruled Thursday that Motorola had infringed Apple’s patent on overscroll bounce or rubber banding, an iOS device feature that automatically bounces a document or Web page when a user reaches its end. The Munich Regional Court found that a number of Motorola devices made unsanctioned use of Apple’s intellectual property, among them the Motorola Milestone XT720, the Atrix and the XOOM. And it granted Apple’s request for a preliminary sales ban on those devices.

If Apple chooses to, it can post a $32 million bond to enforce the ban, which it will almost certainly do. Just as Motorola will almost certainly appeal the decision and continue to assail the validity of the patent Apple is asserting against it.