Apple took its patent infringement suit against Samsung to the next level when it asked the U.S. District Court to issue a preliminary injunction against sales of a Samsung tablet and phones.
The motion, which was filed at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California and first reported by FOSS Patents, alleges that the Infuse 4G, Galaxy S 4G, Droid Charge, and Galaxy Tab 10.1 violate three design patents and one utility patent held by Apple.
As AppleInsider points out: if the injunction is granted, it would force Samsung to stop selling the devices in the United States.
According to court documents Apple hopes to “expedite resolution of this motion” by selecting intellectual property rights that it says can easily be decided on without trial.
Apple asserts that the “unique and refined ‘Apple look'” of its iPhone and iPad is globally recognised and “has played a critical role” in the products’ success. The company said that the similar look of the four Samsung devices mentioned in the motion is “no accident” and alleges that Samsung “chose to copy Apple, not to innovate.”
Apple asserted the following in court documents:
“The message that Samsung conveys to consumers with its imitative smartphone design is simple: ‘It’s just like an iPhone.’ Samsung’s Galaxy Tab10.1 tablet sends a similar message: ‘It’s just like an iPad.’ With the benefit of those messages, Samsung is seeking to take market share by trading off of the popularity of Apple’s products.”
Although Apple didn’t include the Galaxy S 2 and Galaxy Tab 8.9 in this motion, it reserves the right to go after the unreleased products later.
The copycat debacle first started back in April when Apple filed suit against Samsung for allegedly copying its product designs. Samsung has responded by countersuing Apple and demanding information on Apple’s forthcoming products, purportedly to ensure its own future designs do not infringe.
