A judge has rejected Apple's request to have HTC smartphones removed from store shelves in the UK, ruling that the company's devices don't infringe Apple patents, The Inquirer reports.

Earlier on July 4 Judge Christopher Lloyd ruled that HTC smartphones don't infringe four Apple patents related to touchscreen technologies including multi-touch gestures and its slide-to-unlock mechanism. He added that three out of the four patents were invalid, including Apple's unlocking technique.

The ruling means that HTC phones won't be stopped from entering the UK, which happened in the U.S. earlier this year.

HTC unsurprisingly is pleased with the ruling. A spokesperson said to The INQUIRER, "HTC is pleased with the ruling, which provides further confirmation that Apple's claims against HTC are without merit.

"We remain disappointed that Apple continues to favor competition in the courtroom over competition in the marketplace."

Apple declined to comment on the ruling, but said in its usual boilerplate statement, "We think competition is healthy, but competitors should create their own original technology, not steal ours."