iPad 2 vs Galaxy Tab 10.1: Apple Wins Injunction in Australia

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Stop me if you think you heard this before: a guy walks into a bar and Apple wins another a temporary injunction against a Samsung device in a certain market. It happened so far in Germany, the Netherlands and now it’s official in Australia too.

In its tedious legal spat with the South Korea manufacturer Apple has obtained minor, but important victories in various markets ahead of the main confrontations in U.S. and South Korean courts.

The legal battle between the two companies is spread over four continents as the two giants sued and countersued each other since April in over 20 different patent cases across the globe.

Today a judge in Australia decided to rule in favor of Apple and to put a temporary hold on Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 sales in the region. Samsung has not really been able to sell its flagship Honeycomb tablet in Australia anyway, and now it looks like it may miss the entire Christmas shopping season as a final ruling may be months away.

Apple won a similar injunction in Germany, where the initial Galaxy Tab 10.1 sales ban was upheld in a second ruling. But it also obtained a favorable verdict in the Netherlands. This country represents Samsung’s main European hub, which explains why Apple focused specifically on it. A Dutch court ruled that Samsung may not sell three phones from its Galaxy family, the Galaxy S II, the Galaxy S and the Galaxy Ace.

On top of the countries already mentioned, the two companies have an on-going litigation in UK, France, Italy and Japan, and this game is far from over. In fact Samsung is also taking an important offensive against the iPhone 4S, so it will be interesting to follow these two giants continue carry this battle into the holiday season.

Anyone in Australia interested in a Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet? You may have to get it from a neighboring country this Christmas.