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Dutch appeals court rules against Apple, Samsung can continue to sell Galaxy Tab

Dutch appeals court rules against Apple, Samsung can continue to sell Galaxy Tab

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An appeals court in The Hague has upheld a lower court's decision to not grant Apple's request to halt sales of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 and 10.1v with a preliminary injunction. The Dutch court found Samsung's tablet significantly differentiated itself from Apple's design rights for the iPad.

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An appeals court in The Hague has upheld a lower court's decision to not grant Apple's request to halt sales of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 and 10.1v with a preliminary injunction. The Dutch court found Samsung's tablet significantly differentiated itself from Apple's design right (the company's specific rights on tablet design, not the iPad or iPad 2 itself). Specifically, the court said that differences in the ratio of thickness-to-width-to-length, bezel size, and rear aesthetics gives the Galaxy Tab a "different overall impression" to the "informed user." The ruling is design-based and doesn't address the Dutch injunction Apple got against Samsung's Galaxy smartphones for infringing a software patent. Still, it's good news for Samsung, as the ruling not only allows the company to sell its tablets in the Netherlands, but also to distribute them from the country across the EU, according to The Wall Street Journal. For the Korean company this battle may be over, but there are many more being waged.

Matt Macari contributed to this report.