Whirlpool, currently the world’s largest appliance manufacturer, has lost a round in a patent fight with LG Electronics according to Reuters as the companies battle for the premium U.S. appliance market.
The International Trade Commission, which hears patent cases that involve imports, said on Tuesday that it would not reconsider its February decision that LG Electronics did not infringe a Whirlpool patent for storing ice in the doors of side-by-side refrigerators.
Whirlpool had initially accused LG of infringing five patents, but four were subsequently withdrawn.
Appliance makers such as Whirlpool and Sweden’s Electrolux are facing competition from rivals such as LG and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd of South Korea