Small Victory for Apple? Tab 10.1 Sales Halted in Australia Until Lawsuit Over
Apple has gained at least one victory in their case against Samsung for patent and likeness infringement. Just as they have been trying to do in many other regions, Apple sought the sale of Samsung’s products in Australia banned. They’ve been able to successfully block the sale of the Tab 10.1, according to Bloomberg. The Korea-based manufacturer agreed to terms with Apple after the complain was escalated.
Samsung will be unable to offer the device for sell until the lawsuit has been settled. While the victory may seem small, the actions may urge regulators and judges in other regions to force this upon Samsung. If it doesn’t, then it gives Apple a bit more leverage in urging Samsung to offer the same temporary settlement in regions where the device has already launched.
It’s imperative to note that Samsung agreed to this action and didn’t fight it. It doesn’t indicate Apple will be as successful in other regions. It’s believed Samsung agreed to block sales because the launch has yet to go underway and went only as far as launching a marketing campaign.
Furthermore, Samsung has agreed to afford Apple three units of the version of the Tab 10.1 that was to be sold in Australia. While we don’t think Apple’s “likeness” complaint fits here, they may be able to crack it open and find things inside that belong to them as documented in patents.
Samsung could have done this to appease to Apple in one market and seek to get them to lift the pressure in other markets, though. This would help Samsung go along with business as usual in markets where their products have already successfully launched.
It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that Samsung will do anything to keep from pulling products off of shelves where they’ve already been advertised as available. That’s probably why Samsung offered up the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Australia and not the Samsung Galaxy S II. And if Apple are not successful in Australia, Samsung has an easier time getting the lawyers off their backs and coming to far more reasonable terms than what Apple’s proposed.
There’s no telling if this is as far as Apple will be able to get in their radical approach to taming a rising competitor, but at least they have something to celebrate for in their frightening barrage of patent lawsuits. Court proceedings in Australia will resume August 29th. [Bloomberg]