Katie Marsal
Judge Johanna Brueckner-Hofman indicated at a hearing Thursday that it is unlikely that Samsung's redesigned Galaxy Tab 10.1N will be banned from sale, according to Bloomberg. The Dusseldorf court found that Samsung has changed the look of its touchscreen tablet enough to distance itself from Apple's iPad.
"Consumers are well aware that there is an original and that competitors try to use similar designs, so buyers are vigilant when looking at products," the judge reportedly said. "We don't think that someone buys a Samsung to make his table neighbor at the coffee house believe he owns an iPad."
A final ruling in the case has been set for Feb. 9. Apple's attorneys attempted to convince the court that that Samsung's Galaxy Tab 10.1 is "exploiting the reputation of the iPad."
Samsung has suggested that Apple's lawsuits blocking the Galaxy Tab have boosted awareness of the device. The company has even initiated an advertising campaign stating the device is "the tablet Apple tried to stop."
Though Apple initially won a ban on the Galaxy Tab 10.1, Samsung redesigned the device and renamed it the Galaxy Tab 10.1N in an attempt to avoid patent infringement claims from Apple. The new tablet has thicker edges and speakers that accompany the front screen.
Apple made the first attack in the courtroom against Samsung in April, with a lawsuit accusing the company of copying the look and feel of the iPhone and iPad. That sparked a worldwide legal battle in which both companies have accused the other of patent infringement.
Malcolm Owen
Oliver Haslam
Christine McKee
Amber Neely
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68 Comments
Logic at last!
Does Apple have patented those in Germany? If so then... nice try.
Reminder: Patent law is regional. Some countries do not give... about US Patent. If you want to bring US ITC in place then perhaps some governments will get into trouble for signing anything with US ITC while under law of sovereign country.
I say USPO does mediocre work and it opens "law trading" market which is not a law but business.
Patent rules of Europe:
1. Innovative
2. Cannot be covered under different pattent (multiple times).
3. Time limit.
4. Pay for sustatining for period of time.
5. Right of use by people who came up before a corporation applied for patent (if there is proof).
Those ruleas are thought in Universities and not anly to lawyers in Europe.
Another Domino effect. That's two happening for 2012. Android already winning the smartphone. Next Tablets and now lawsuits falling against Apple. It's going to be a challenging year for Apple.
@slapppy: When you are playing with only two dominos, calling domino effect is rather silly wouldn't you say? Perhaps its time to sit back and assess the situation from a wider perspective than your own needs, wants and desires.
OT, each of these lawsuits is a strategic move in corporate life. I can guarantee that each lawsuit mapped out by each team is being used as a bargaining point as they negotiate their relationships in the market as competitors as well as client/supplier.
Perhaps certain commenters in these threads would benefit from some basic business courses to enlighten their commentary.
So Samsung's market positioning is: "we're incompetent to come up with anything ourselves and the first version of the Tab was so nearly identical to the iPad that it was banned in several countries. Therefore, we stretched our innovation to the limit and were just barely able to come up with a device that can be distinguished from an iPad on close inspection."
Doesn't sound like much of a strategy.