The Australian High Court has ruled that Samsung can finally sell its Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablets in that country. The tablet has been banned since a temporary injunction was instituted in July. Last Wednesday an appeals court overturned the injunction, clearing the way for the device to go on sale, but as Samsung was preparing to bring shipments of the device into the country, Apple filed an appeal and the court agreed to extend the injunction by one week in order to allow time for Apple’s appeal to be heard.
The ruling represents a relatively rare setback for Apple in its ongoing dispute with Samsung. The iPad maker filed suit against the rival company in April in the US to block sales of Samsung’s Galaxy line of phones and tablets, which Apple accused of being ripoffs of its own iPhone and iPad. Samsung quickly countersued in the US and elsewhere in a legal battle that would eventually spread to 10 countries with 20 suits and counter-suits. The cases have generally gone in Apple’s favor as sales of the Galaxy Tab have been blocked in several countries.
Today’s ruling in Australia, however, follows closely on the heels of a similar ruling in US district court, where judge Lucy Koh refused to grant an injunction barring the sale of the devices in the US. Cases in both the US and Australia are expected to go to trial sometime next year. By that time, however, the discussion may well be moot, as rumors surfaced yesterday that Samsung was preparing to unveil its next generation tablet – complete with retina display-like screen resolution and the latest version of the Android operating system – in February.