Judge Lucy Koh, the original judge in the trial, has knocked 40 per cent ($450.5 million) off the amount Samsung has to pay Apple for infringing its design patents. The reduction is not because the original verdict was in any way unsound, but because the jury got its sums wrong when calculating the damages.

But the case will also rumble on, since the judge has now ordered a new jury trial to determine the size of the damages yet to be paid (if they are) for 14 other products that were also found to be infringing Apple's patents.

So it's possible that Samsung is about to take one step forward and .two steps back if the new jury also loads up the damages.

The US trail was only one of a number of trials the two smartphone giants have undertaken in pursuit of what we called 'patent absurdity' over the fabulously important smartphone and tablet market. See - Apple: A licence to bully?