At stake is the charge on Samsung that the Korean manufacturer has 'blatantly' copied the look and feel of Apple's iconic and premium iPhones and iPads. "This kind of blatant copying is wrong and, as we've said many times before, we need to protect Apple's intellectual property when companies steal our ideas," said Apple's spokeswoman, reported Reuters.

The US is not the only country where Samsung and Apple are going head-to-head. The world's largest consumer electronics company Samsung and Apple are fighting charges related to patent violations in 10 countries. Between themselves, both companies have carved out a near duopoly as far as high-end smartphones and tablets are concerned even as Blackberry and Nokia have fallen by the wayside. It's not just tablets, Apple has also initiated action for an injuction against Samsung's Galaxy S III for entry into the US market - fearing the heavily-marketed state-of-the-art smartphone will wean away iPhone users.

The Apple-Samsung legal imbroglio began in 2011 when Apple filed a case against Samsung last year, charging it of "slavishly" copying the iPhone and iPad. With the latest judgment by the US court, the rulings in the patent trial between the two companies on July 30 could lay the legal precedent in similar cases.

Samsung is eying Apple's massive 63 per cent global marketshare for tablets, as per data site Display Search, while Samsung hold's only 7.5 per cent of the global marketshare. Apple and Samsung have built their respective market shares with a lot of blood and sweat (no pun intended). A positive decision for Samsung post-trial can lead to erosion in Apple's marketshare, and if the decision goes against Samsung, the Korean electronics major will be denied access to a vital market like the US - especially as it is showing early signs of recovery led by infusion of government funds to create jobs.