Apple 'Must Run Samsung Ads' High Court Reportedly Demands

Apple 'Must Run Samsung Ads'

Apple has reportedly been ordered to run 'adverts' explaining that Samsung did not copy its design for the iPad.

The ruling, which was not published in the court's 9 July decision but which was discussed in court, orders Apple to publish the notice on its UK website and British newspapers.

Judge Colin Birss said on Wednesday that the website notice must be online for six months, and be published in several newspapers and magazines.

Bloomberg reported that Richard Hacon, Apple's lawyer, said that the order was effectively a demand to publish "an advertisement".

The High Court ruled in July that Samsung's Galaxy Tab did not infringe on Apple's iPad because it wasn't "cool" enough to be mistaken for its competitor.

The ruling said that Samsung's design for the Tab 10.1, Tab 8.9 and Tab 7.7 wasn't good enough to confuse consumers.

Judge Biriss said that the Tab does not have the same "understated and extreme simplicity".

"The informed user's overall impression of each of the Samsung Galaxy Tablets is the following," the ruling said:

"From the front they belong to the family which includes the Apple design; but the Samsung products are very thin, almost insubstantial members of that family with unusual details on the back.

"They do not have the same understated and extreme simplicity which is possessed by the Apple design. They are not as cool. The overall impression produced is different."

Biriss did acknowledge that the designs were "very, very similar" from the front, but the conclusion was that Samsung had not infringed on Apple's design.

He said:

"The view from the front is really very striking. The Galaxy tablets are not identical to the Apple design but they are very, very similar in this respect. The Samsung tablets use the very same screen, with a flat glass plate out to a very thin rim and a plain border under the glass."

Samsung welcomed the ruling on 9 July - despite the dig at its design abilities.

"Should Apple continue to make excessive legal claims in other countries based on such generic designs, innovation in the industry could be harmed and consumer choice unduly limited," the company said after the ruling.

Apple spokesman Alan Hely said in an emailed statement that the company believed Samsung had 'blatantly copied' its designs.

He said:

"It's no coincidence that Samsung's latest products look a lot like the iPhone and iPad. This kind of blatant copying is wrong and, as we've said many times before, we need to protect Apple's intellectual property."

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