Apple Succeeds in Getting Samsung's Galaxy Tab 10.1 Banned in Germany

[dgstorm]

It's rather surprising that we get something new about the Apple vs. Samsung lawsuits everyday. It's not surprising from a journalistic point-of-view, but it is surprising because usually court cases take a lot longer than this. At any rate, after Samsung scored a pseudo-victory against Apple in the Netherlands, now they have scored a stinging defeat in Germany. The Dusseldorf court ruled in favor of the Apple ban on the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Germany.

Originally, this was a preliminary injunction to bar Samsung from selling the device in all of Europe except the Netherlands. Then, the lawsuit was downgraded by the court to include just Germany. The judge in the proceeding upheld the preliminary injunction. Now it must go before a Higher Regional Court to determine if it should become a permanent ban.

Here's a quote from the TalkAndroid article with some details and comments from the judge,

Presiding Judge Johanna Brueckner-Hofmann said the following when delivering the verdict:

“The court is of the opinion that Apple’s minimalistic design isn’t the only technical solution to make a tablet computer, other designs are possible. For the informed customer there remains the predominant overall impression that the device looks like the design Apple has protected in Europe.”

The judge said the court didn’t compare the Galaxy Tab 10.1 with the actual iPad, but instead focused on a design Apple filed with the European Union intellectual property agency in Spain.

“Samsung’s tablet didn’t keep enough distance from the Apple design,” the judge said. “While the back of the Galaxy is different from Apple’s registered design, the important feature is the front, which is nearly identical,” she said.

“The crucial issue was whether the Galaxy tablet looked like the drawings registered as a design right,” she said. “Also, our case had nothing to do with trademarks or patents for technology.”

Samsung will appeal the ruling. Their statement indicated that the ruling “severely limits consumer choice in Germany,” and “restricts design innovation and progress in the industry.”

Source: GalaxyForums.net and GalaxyTabForums.net via TalkAndroid and Bloomberg