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BlackBerry gets big win in keeping keyboard attachment away from rival phones

Sorry, iPhone users: Your dreams of having a real keyboard on your cell phone just got a little less plausible.

Typo Products LLC will not be allowed to make a keyboard attachment that mimics they iconic BlackBerry keyboard, The Toronto Star reports, after a judge ruled it would infringe on two of BlackBerry Ltd.'s patents.

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It's good news for Canadian smartphone maker BlackBerry, who has run into countless problems in recent years as it continues to lose market share despite its efforts to reinvent itself. Die-hard BlackBerry users have long touted features like the physical keyboard and BBM as the reasons they're so dedicated to the brand. Had Typo been allowed to continue selling its keyboard, it could have made a serious dent in the loyal BlackBerry fan base.

But that's not going to happen now, at least in the U.S., after Judge William Orrick ruled BlackBerry had a "likelihood" of proving that the Typo keyboard violates intellectual property rights, and that BlackBerry would be likely damaged if sales of the keyboard case for iPhone were allowed to continue, AP reports. Following the ruling, sales of Typo's $99 keyboard accessory have now been banned in the U.S.

BlackBerry filed a lawsuit against Typo, which was co-founded by Ryan Seacrest of American Idol fame, back in January, requesting a court order blocking the sale of the Keyboard Case for iPhone 5/5S. They've now been granted that injunction.

In a statement issued after the ruling, Typo said: "Typo will continue to make and sell innovative products that people can't live without."

BlackBerry's statement, unsurprisingly, was much more upbeat: "BlackBerry is pleased that its motion for a preliminary injunction against Typo Products LLC was granted. This ruling will help prevent further injury to BlackBerry from Typo's blatant theft of our patented keyboard technology," a BlackBerry spokesperson shared with Reuters via email.