SAN DIEGO — Santa's bag could be missing some cell phones this holiday season, if a ban holds on new models of phones with chips from Qualcomm Inc.

The ban Thursday by the U.S. International Trade Commission raises questions about how quickly phone makers and carriers will be able to get new models to consumers. Qualcomm estimates the ruling may prevent tens of millions of new-model handsets from entering the United States.

The ITC ruling in a patent dispute with chipmaker Broadcom Corp. bans imports of new models of advanced phones that contain Qualcomm chips. Existing models are unaffected, but that counts for little in a rapidly changing market.

"This industry comes out with new models almost every week," said Nancy Stark, a spokeswoman for Verizon Wireless, a joint venture of Verizon Communications Inc. and Vodafone Group PLC. "Innovation will come to a trickle if future models are not allowed."

CTIA, the nation's top wireless industry lobbying group, urged President Bush to reverse the decision, which it said "will cause enormous undue harm to tens of millions of American wireless consumers."

"Consumers should not have to pay the price for a legal debate that could be settled by other means," CTIA said.

The ban affects the high-speed EV-DO and WCDMA network technologies. Carriers that stand to suffer most are Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel Corp., which rely heavily on Qualcomm chips.

If upheld, the ban will apply to about 4.2 million phones encompassing 11 models this year, according to Tina Teng, an analyst at iSuppli Corp. research firm. That would represent less than 5 percent of North American phone shipments for the second half of the year, she said.

The order will not affect the introduction of Apple Inc.'s iPhone June 29. AT&T Inc. has exclusive rights to carry the iPhone, and the gadget's first version uses the carrier's EDGE network, which is not covered by the ITC ruling.

Apple doesn't need a lift from its competitors' woes anyway, said Michael King, an analyst at Gartner Inc. tech research firm.

"There's so much hype around the iPhone that I don't think they will be able to produce enough to meet demand, so this won't help much," he said.

Hardest hit among manufacturers would be LG Electronics Inc., Samsung Electronics Co. and Motorola Inc., which is slated to introduce its Razr 2 this year, analysts said. Nokia Corp., the world's largest handset maker, would be almost unscathed.

Qualcomm plans to ask a federal appeals court to block the order from taking effect in 60 days and will also ask President Bush to reverse the decision.

The White House said yesterday that it will defer to the U.S. Trade Representative, as it has on ITC rulings since 2005. A USTR spokeswoman, Gretchen Hamel, said the agency would study the decision.

Presidents have overturned ITC decisions only five times in the past, most recently in 1987, said ITC spokeswoman Peg O'Laughlin.

Investors were unfazed. Qualcomm shares rose 85 cents, or 2 percent, to $41.87 on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Broadcom's Nasdaq-traded shares slipped 4 cents, or 0.1 percent, to $30.53.

Edward Snyder, an analyst at Charter Equity Research, said investors were more focused on Qualcomm's short-term business prospects but that the ruling would wreak havoc on carriers if it stands, particularly Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel.