Apple Files for Immediate Galaxy Tab 10.1 Ban in the U.S.

Even though Tim Cook and Samsung’s CEO reportedly met for settlement talks today, the legal battle between the two companies probably won’t be ending any time soon. Last Friday, Apple filed a request for an immediate U.S.-wide sale ban on Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1.

FOSS Patents reports:

…Apple filed a motion for a U.S. preliminary injunction against Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1. The motion is based on a ruling by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC), which came down four days earlier and sided with Apple on the question of whether an iPad-related design patent (U.S. Patent No. D504,889) is likely valid. It also comes only three calendar days before the two companies’ CEOs and chief lawyers will hold court-moderated settlement talks in San Francisco.

Apple’s motion is fairly likely to succeed. If and when it does, there will be formal U.S. bans in place against all three of the leading Android device makers. […] 

A previous appeal in the case confirmed that the product was indeed infringing some of Apple’s designs, making the company’s claim valid. As Samsung usually doesn’t take legal matters lightly, this will almost certainly put a damper on the patent settlement peace talks between the two companies.

Apple recommends that Samsung be given until May 25th to respond (that’s just 4 days away!). Samsung has managed to sidestep similar bans in the past by slightly redesigning the offending products (such as in Germany). As such, Samsung would likely be able to get the tablet (in some form or another) back on store shelves very quickly, even if Apple is granted their request.
J. Glenn Künzler

Glenn is Managing Editor at MacTrast, and has been using a Mac since he bought his first MacBook Pro in 2006. He lives in a small town in Utah, enjoys bacon more than you can possibly imagine, and is severely addicted to pie.

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