Apple Wins Extension on Australian Samsung Galaxy Tab Ban

We reported yesterday about Samsung winning their appeal of the ban on sales of their Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Australia. However, High Court Justice John Dyson Heydon has extended the ban on sales of the Samsung device through December 9th.

Bloomberg reports, that on the 9th, Australia’s top court will consider Apple’s request for permission to appeal a lower court’s order issued this week. The ruling lifted a ban that has been in place since October.

“A stay for one week will cost Samsung, in effect, one week’s trade,” Heydon said, following a 90-minute hearing in Sydney. The extension will hurt Samsung “but not to extend the status quo is likely to be injurious to Apple,” he said.

This puts to an end Samsung’s plans to begin importing the Galaxy Tab 10.1 into Australia this weekend in order to take advantage of the Holiday shopping season. Samsung has said if it can’t sell the tablet in Australia before Christmas, it would scrap the release of the device in the country.

“This is a critical period of time,” Katrina Howard, Samsung’s lawyer, told Heydon today. “Even one day can make a difference.”

Samsung had planned to release the tablet for sale today at 4 p.m. Sydney time, import the product over the weekend and begin a marketing campaign, Howard said.