Ericsson seeks import ban against Samsung devices in the U.S.

Ericsson (ERIC) on Monday filed a request with the U.S. International Trade Commission in an effort to ban Samsung’s (005930) smartphones and tablets from the market. The Swedish company claims that Samsung’s products infringe upon its patents, Reuters reported. The two companies attempted to settle their disagreements, however they failed to reach a licensing agreement. Samsung said the company had asked for “prohibitively higher royalty rates to renew the same patent portfolio” and that it will defend itself against a lawsuit. Ericsson claims that an import ban is not the company’s goal, although it is part of the process of getting the South Korean manufacturer to sign a new licensing agreement.