Galaxy Tab 10.1

Apple Wins Case to Block New Galaxy Tab in Germany

JUN YANG SEOUL

Samsung Electronics is halting promotion of its latest tablet computer in Germany after Apple won a second injunction blocking Galaxy Tab sales there as one of the world’s largest electronics shows gets under way in Berlin. Samsung, Apple’s closest rival in tablet computers, pulled the just-unveiled Galaxy Tab 7.7 out of the IFA consumer-electronics show in Berlin after a court on September 2 granted Apple’s request to ban sales and marketing of the product, James Chung, a Seoul-based spokesman for Samsung, said on Sunday. Chung could not confirm if Samsung has received the court order, while Steve Park, a Seoulbased spokesman for Apple, could not immediately comment on the ruling. “Samsung respects the court’s decision,” said Chung, adding that the company believes it “severely limits consumer choice in Germany”. Samsung will pursue all available options, including legal action, to defend its intellectual property rights, he said. Samsung and Apple are involved in legal disputes across three continents, as Apple — also one of the biggest customers for the South Korean manufacturer’s chips and displays — claims the Galaxy devices copied its iPhone and iPad. Last month, the Dusseldorf Regional Court granted Apple a temporary sales ban on the earlier Galaxy Tab 10.1 model in 26 of the 27 European Union member countries.
The August ruling, scaled back to only Germany on jurisdictional grounds, could have cost Samsung sales of as many as half a million units this year, according to an estimate by Strategy Analytics.
Legal disputes between the two technology companies began after Apple charged Samsung with “slavishly” copying its products in an April suit filed in the US. Samsung, which holds the second-largest number of patents in the US, countersued in Seoul, Tokyo, Germany and California.
Samsung on August 25 lost a court ruling in Holland which ordered it to halt some sales of its smartphones after October 13.— Bloomberg