Motorola could be a major beneficiary after Apple yesterday was successful in at least temporarily halting sales of Samsung’s new Galaxy 10.1 tablet in Australia.Samsung Australia last week announced plans to launch its new 10-h tablet on August 11. But it has had to abandon that plan after Apple launched a patent lawsuit on Australia’s Federal Court – and yesterday won an agreement by Samsung that it won’t sell the new tablet – until the lawsuit is resolved.
Motorola’s Xoom tablet is believed to be the current non-Apple best-seller in Australia though sales would be a long way behind Apple’s iPad. The Galaxy Tab had looked the most likely challenger but yesterday’s decision sees the Samsung machine effectively sidelined for weeks, if not months.
Apple claims Galaxy Tab 10.1 infringes 10 Apple patents luding the “look and feel” and touchscreen technology of the iPad Steven Burley a lawyer for Apple told Federal Court Justice Annabelle Bennett in Sydney on Monday.
During a break in proceedings Samsung and Apple reached an accord under which the South Korean company agreed to stop advertising the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Australia and not to sell the device until it wins court approval or the lawsuit is resolved.
Should Apple lose the patent infringement case it has agreed to pay Samsung unspecified damages.
The Australian case follows a US lawsuit launched by Apple in April in which it claimed Samsung devices “slavishly” imitated the designs and technologies used for its iPad and iPhone.
Samsung retaliated with lawsuits in South Korea, Japan, Germany and the US.
In Australia Apple is claiming the tablet infringes its “slide to unlock” feature as well as ph-to-zoom and edge-bounce features when viewing images and reading documents.
Justice Bennett has scheduled a hearing for August 29 to review the status of the case and set a trial date if necessary.
