An Australian court overturned an Apple injunction on Friday blocking the sales of Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 in the country. The new ruling means Samsung can start selling its iPad competitor down under, and it marks the second blow to Apple’s patent battles in one day.
The injunction had previously been overturned, but Apple appealed to Australia’s High Court last week in hopes of keeping the ban in place. That court, however, upheld the earlier ruling, opening the door for Samsung to get its tablet into store shelves, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
Australia greenlights Galaxy Tab 10.1 sales
Apple and Samsung have been locked in a legal battle over patent infringement claims for several months. Both companies have alleged that the other’s mobile devices use patented technologies without proper licensing, and have filed lawsuits against each other in the U.S. and other countries.
A German court issued an injunction blocking the sale of Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet in the country, and the company lost an appeal to overturning that ruling. Apple was also awarded a temporary injunction through a Dutch court blocking the sale of some Galaxy devices in the European Union.
Samsung has been working to block iPhone 4S sales in Australia, Japan, France, and Italy, but decided against seeking an injunction at home in South Korea. “We concluded that we should engage in legal battles with Apple only in the global market, but not in order to gain more market share in Korea,” a Samsung executive said.
Apple also took it on the chin in Germany today with a court ruling in favor of a Samsung injunction blocking the sale the iPhone and iPad in the country. Apple will most likely appeal that ruling.
The Australian Court ruling is good news for Samsung since it can still take advantage of the holiday sales window. The company is expected to start selling the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in the country next week.
Apple didn’t comment on the ruling.