Samsung is hit with another ban that encompasses the whole of the EU. Apple has been vigilant at making sure no Samsung products get sold that look even remotely like an iPhone or an iPad.
Despite Samsung’s “victory” in the UK, forcing Apple to make advertisements stating that Samsung has not copied the iPad, it would seem that they are bound to lose more. The Dusseldorf Higher Regional Court in Germany has passed a preliminary ban on the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7, after Apple has proven its cause.
The cause of the ban is once again related to Apple’s look and feel patents, accusing Samsung of making products that blatantly copies the look and feel of the iPad with the Galaxy Tab series. There is no comment yet as to how it will affect the UK, in which the same Galaxy Tab 7.7 has passed to be non-infringing to Apple’s patents due to not being “cool enough”.
The EU-wide ban will stay in effect during the full blown patent trial that will ensue after the preliminary injunction. Samsung is understandably disappointed with the ruling, saying that they will fight this to the end, and prove their innocence in the matter. Fortunately for Samsung, the larger Galaxy Tab 10.1N has been ruled to have significant enough changes in its design, and no longer breaches Apple’s patents.
Many fans contest why the smaller tablet has even been banned when Apple doesn’t even make a 7-inch tablet. It should be noted that regardless of size, if the design is the same, it will still be in breach of Apple’s intellectual property. What they should contest, is that the Galaxy Tab 7.7 doesn’t even remotely look like an iPad. From back to front, the only thing you can consider resembling the design is the black border.
The front camera placement, the existence of the speaker for phone functionality, back markings, button placements, shape and dimensions all differ from the iPad. Many wonders if the glasses of these Judges need to be checked, and if they don’t have one, they should really get some.
While the Galaxy Tab 7.7 has indeed been banned temporarily, there is no word yet if its smaller counterpart, the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus, will suffer the same fate. The two slates have identical designs, so it might indeed be next in line to get a ban from the German court.
When it comes to these patent battles, we learn that you can’t win them all, despite it being the same exact battle for the same exact reasons. The personality and bias of every Judge will determine who wins.
Image sources: gsmarena.com, redmondpie.com
