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SAN FRANCISCO - APPLE has won a United States patent for touch-screen controls and gained a potential legal weapon against iPhone competitors.
US Patent 7,479,949 is awarded to '(chief executive) Steve Jobs et al' for a method of 'detecting one or more finger contacts with the touch-screen display' to command computing devices.
A multi-page patent available online by the US Patent and Trade Office on Monday details commands that are used by the iPhone or iPod Touch to display data, such as finger or thumb swiping, twisting or spreading to flip pages, rotate views or enlarge images.
The patent was issued last Tuesday, a day before Apple announced record-high quarterly profits.
Word of the patent provides ominous context for a warning made by Apple chief operating officer Tim Cook during a conference call that followed the release of the California firm's earnings report.
He said he believes iPhones are 'years ahead of the competition', and that Apple is vigilantly watching to make sure certain rivals do not usurp its intellectual property (IP).
'We think competition is good,' Mr Cook said. 'We are ready to suit up and go against anyone. However, we will not stand for having our IP ripped off and will use whatever weapons at our disposal.'
While not mentioning a specific competitor, he made his comment in reply to a question related to a new Palm Pre touch-screen mobile telephone, unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show this month to stellar reviews.
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