10.1 Tab would be “commercially dead” if a ruling isn’t made soon, Samsung warned in a Sydney court yesterday.
 Click to enlarge |
The warning to Justice Annabelle Bennett, who is presiding over the messy patent battle between Apple and Samsung, comes as the case spilled over into a second week of hearings.
It was originally thought a decision would be delivered by Friday last in Sydney’s Federal Court.
“Our product would be kept out of the market for the Christmas period and into next year,” warned Samsung’s lawyer Neil Young yesterday.
“Therefore, that product would be dead.”
Apple are claiming tab rival Samsung copied the look and form factor of its iconic iPad 2, which accounts for around 75% of market here in Australia, and has sold half a million to date, according to recent figures from Credit Suisse.
However Samsung’s new 10.1 inch Tab is seen to a be a major threat to the iPad’s market domination. Last week, counsel for Apple admitted South Korean rival Samsung was a “formidable” competitor and the new Android Honeycomb Tab would damage its current marketshare.
Samsung had been looking to cut a deal with Apple late last week, which would have seen the controversial Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet go on sale in Australia immediately. However, this failed to come to pass.
However, Justice Bennett said she understood the business implications involved and would make a decision as “quickly as possible.”
“It’s going to take me a little time, but I will do it as quickly as possible given the urgency for both parties,” she said yesterday.
In other Apple news, the supposed launch of iPhone 5 has failed to come to pass with Cupertino launching an update to world’s top selling handset, iPhone 4, instead.
Read Apple Launch Upgraded iPhone 4 No iPhone 5 Here
