Apple denied ban on Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1N, Galaxy Nexus in Germany

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Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 on top, Galaxy Tab 10.1N on bottom

A German court has denied Apple's request to ban the sale of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1N tablet and Google Galaxy Nexus smartphone on the grounds of existing use of the technology Apple claims rights to.

Samsung released the revised Galaxy Tab 10.1N tablet after Apple was successful in getting the original Galaxy Tab 10.1 banned from store shelves. The 10.1N featured a slightly tweaked industrial design that further differentiated the device from Apple's own iPad 2. Despite the modifications, Apple filed to have an injunction placed against the 10.1N shortly after it was released. In December, German courts indicated that it was not likely that the injunction would be granted.

The patent that Apple claims Samsung's devices violated was not a design patent, as used in the past to get the original 10.1 pulled from shelves, but rather a technology patent related to how touchscreens function. The court sided with Samsung in determining that the patent will likely be revoked because of prior use of touchscreen technology in the market.

"Samsung has shown that it is more likely than not that the patent will be revoked because of a technology that was already on the market before the intellectual property had been filed for protection," said the judge overseeing the case.

This is an important victory for Samsung in this ongoing saga, as the injunction against the original Galaxy Tab 10.1 (and its smaller sibling, the Galaxy Tab 8.9) was just upheld yesterday. We expect to see more activity from both Apple and Samsung as this story continues to develop. [via Bloomberg]