Samsung heads to court to end Galaxy Tab ban
The company, along with Apple, will be in a German court on August 25 to present arguments. A decision will follow in early September.
Samsung and Apple are prepping themselves for a key battle later this month over the Galaxy Tab 10.1.
On August 25, a German court will hear arguments on whether it should overturn a temporary ban on the sale of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 across the European Union.
Earlier this week, the court granted Apple a preliminary injunction banning the sale of Samsung's tablet in all European Union countries, except for the Netherlands. Apple, obviously pleased with the result, reissued a statement it has released several times over the last few months, charging that Samsung knowingly copied the design of its iPad and iPhone.
"It's no coincidence that Samsung's latest products look a lot like the iPhone and iPad, from the shape of the hardware to the user interface and even the packaging," the company said in a statement. "This kind of blatant copying is wrong, and we need to protect Apple's intellectual property when companies steal our ideas."
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In a statement to CNET following the ruling, Samsung said that it was surprised by the decision, since, it claims, it had no idea that the court was even considering a preliminary injunction on the matter.
"The request for injunction was filed with no notice to Samsung, and the order was issued without any hearing or presentation of evidence from Samsung," the company told CNET. "We will take all necessary measures to ensure Samsung's innovative mobile communications devices are available to customers in Europe and around the world."
Samsung's reaction in Europe is quite different from its stance in Australia. In the land down under, the company has come to an agreement with Apple that bans the sale of the U.S. version of its Galaxy Tab 10.1. A model approved by Apple, however, will be offered to customers. Samsung agreed to give Apple three samples of its tablet for the company to vet before the device goes on sale.
Although the August 25 hearing could scuttle Apple's hopes of scoring a permanent injunction, according to Reuters, the company has shown no signs of slowing its lawsuit tear. The iPhone maker reportedly filed an injunction request in The Hague recently to ban the sale of Samsung products in the Netherlands. That case will be heard on September 15.
After the German court hears arguments on August 25, it expects to make a decision in early September.