The Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 is banned in Australia. Or is it? Not if these e-tailers – including MobiCity and dMavo are anything to go by. Mobicity confirmed receiving a letter from Apple’s lawyers requesting it to comply with the injunction almost two weeks ago, but on their website today still had the 10.1 Galaxy on sale.
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However, it seems rebellious e-tailers like Mobicity.com.au and dMavo- are still selling the Galaxy Tab 10.1 to Australians anyway – in fact consumers can buy 9 devices at a time – and are also selling other Galaxy Tabs including 8.9 model as well as offering valid warranties.
Despite both retailer’s Australian domain addresses, Mobicity say it is Hong Kong-owned and operated, and therefore not bound by the Australian ruling.
In fact, such was the consumer demand it had ran out of stock of some of the 32GB WiFi models, a MobiCity sales rep revealed, but had the 16GB version selling at $549 today – down from $809 – and 3G models priced at $649 today.
And down at dMavo.com.au demand was so strong, its newly installed servers have gone down this afternoon with ‘503 Service Temporarily Unavailable message’ appearing.
And its not the first time that has happened, managing director, Wojtek Czarnocki, told SMH, whose business is booming in the rush for the banned Samsung tablet on Android Honeycomb. tipped as thinner and faster than Apple equivalent and current market leader, iPad 2.
Apple succeeded in getting an interim injunction banning the sale of the Android Galaxy Tab 10.1 here last month, pending a full hearing later this year.
The e-tailer who sells PC’s, Canon cameras and computer accessories said it was forced to create a new European entity and build a separate server “just to deal with the tablet orders.”
Czarnocki also dismissed Apple’s legal communications to it, requestting it cease sale of the outlawed Tab as “bluffing”:
“Was Apple just bluffing or do they really want to play the cat and mouse game? We’re up for it,”he declared, willing global giant Apple for a fight.
dMavo’s shrewd move to transfer some of its operations to Europe served to bypass the Australian court injunction and may mean strictly speaking the company is within its rights, for now.
But the e-tailer took to Facebook today insisting it was paying all its taxes and is still an “Australian based” company following an article in The Australian, which suggested Gerry Harvey was about to move his operation offshore in a bid to fight online traders, who are dodging paying GST to the government.
“With respect to the Samsung Galaxy 10.1 tablets, our initiative to set up an offshore entity had not been driven by the need to sidestep GST or any compliance costs.”
dMavo also defended its offshore move, saying it was a “precaution” against Apple and will issue all customers with a GST invoice, meaning consumers will still pay tax on the device.
“Such a pre-emptive move was only a precaution in case Apple would like to take its threats further as a result of the current Federal Court proceedings. Such a step has only been taken to protect our main Australian business from any potential legal action. As of today and until further notice, the tablets continue to sell via dMavo Pty Ltd and a GST Tax Invoice is being provided for such purchases.”
“As an Australian based company we had always charged GST and our customers obtain a GST Tax Invoice for all their purchases. That includes the Samsung Galaxy 10.1 tablets we source from overseas.”
While dMavo admitted “online stores such as ours, do not carry the overheads as a bricks & mortar store”
However, it insisted the likes of Harvey Norman, JB HiFi and others are able to obtain major discounts “due to the sheer volume of units they move at full or semi-discounted prices.”
The court injunction forced Australian retailers like Dick Smith, Harvey Norman and JB Hi Fi to cease plans of stocking the device, although were far from happy about it.
“Obviously, the more competition in the market, the better,” Terry Smart JB Hi-Fi’s CEO told SmartHouse describing the ban of Galaxy Tab 10.1 as “disappointing.”
Even Aussie online e-tailer Ruslan Kogan’s Kogan Technologies, withdrew the Galaxy Tab after receiving a letter from Apple’s legal team.
dMavo were non-contactable at the time of writing this article.
However, lawyers appear to think the e-tailers are on dangerous territory – and it seems unlikely a powerful force such has Apple is “bluffing” after having spend large sums of money in legal actions against Samsung in courts across the world.
Techrific.com.au simplyelectronics.com.au. Expansys.com.au are also others flogging the banned Samsung Tab 10.1.
