Epson wins initial ruling in ink cartridge suit

TOKYO, April 4 (Reuters) - Japan's Seiko Epson Corp. (6724.T) said on Wednesday it won a preliminary ruling in a dispute in the United States that would block imports of printer ink cartridges that violate Epson's patents.

In February 2006, Seiko Epson, the world's No. 2 ink jet printer maker after Hewlett-Packard, filed the case with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) against a group of 24 suppliers that import and sell Epson-compatible cartridges.

Seiko Epson has already reached a settlement with 7 suppliers such as Artech GmbH of Germany and Ink Lab Co. of Hong Kong.

Seiko Epson said in a press release that ITC on March 30 tentatively ruled in favour of Seiko Epson's request for a general exclusion order on the cartridges.

The order would block all imports of products that infringe on Epson's patents, not only the ones made by the 24 suppliers involved in the dispute.

ITC plans to make a final ruling by July 30, and the order would also require confirmation from the U.S. president, Seiko Epson said.

A public filing of the ruling was not available on ITC's Web site.