Samsung's Galaxy Tab not a copy of iPad, court reiterates

Samsung’s Galaxy Tab is not a copy of Apple’s iPad, an appeals court ruled on Thursday. In doing so, it reiterated an earlier court decision that Samsung's Galaxy tablets did not infringe Apple’s iPad designs because they were "not as cool". 

In July this year, Apple had been ordered by Judge Colin Birss to publish a notice on its UK website, and in British newspapers to inform consumers that the Galaxy Tab's design has not been copied from the iPad. The notice that Apple had been asked to publish was to highlight the court's July 9 decision, wherein it affirmed that Samsung’s Galaxy tablets do not infringe upon Apple’s patented designs. At the time, reports revealed that, "The order means Apple will have to publish “an advertisement” for Samsung, Richard Hacon, a lawyer for Cupertino, California-based Apple, told the court. “No company likes to refer to a rival on its website.”"

British court states that Samsung did not copy Apple

When in a High Court judgment Judge Colin Birss ruled that Samsung's Galaxy tablets were "not as cool", he shared that Samsung's Galaxy tablets were part of the same family as Apple when viewed from the front, but the Samsung products were "very thin, almost insubstantial members of that family with unusual details on the back".

The judge added, "They do not have the same understated and extreme simplicity which is possessed by the Apple design. They are not as cool. The overall impression produced is different." At the time, however it had been shared that Apple's lawyer revealed that the company "would appeal the July 9 decision," and that Judge Birss has allowed the company to take its case forward to the court of appeal. 

Early this month, a US court made ineffective a temporary sales ban against Samsung Electronics Co Ltd's Galaxy Tab 10.1, in time for the run-up to the pivotal holiday shopping season. In its statement, Samsung shared, "We are pleased with the court's action today, which vindicates our position that there was no infringement of Apple's design patent and that an injunction was not called for".

Apple recently won after what had been one long battle and Samsung Electronics is to cough up compensation to the tune of a staggering $1.05 billion. It is a big win for the company, and on the Internet is circulating a copy of the email that Apple chief, Tim Cook sent out to his employees. Incidentally, Cook also completes his one year on the job today. In the e-mail that Cook sent out to his employees after the big win, he wrote how that lawsuit has been about values, more importantly than patents or money. He adds that the lawsuit came into being only after repeatedly asking Samsung to stop copying Apple's work. 

Click here to know all about the Apple vs Samsung lawsuit. 

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