U.K. Judge Rules In Favor Of Samsung Galaxy Tab Saying It’s ‘Not As Cool’ As iPad

Last Monday, U.S District Judge Lucy Koh denied Samsung’s request to lift ban on Samsung Galaxy Tab sales in the region. However, a  U.K. judge has ruled in favor of Samsung today saying that its Galaxy tablets aren’t “cool” enough to be confused with Apple’s iPad and therefore the design for Samsung’s three Galaxy tablets doesn’t infringe Apple’s registered design, Bloomberg is reporting. Judge Colin Birss also said today in London that consumers aren’t likely to get the tablet computers mixed up.

Detailing from the source:

The Galaxy tablets “do not have the same understated and extreme simplicity which is possessed by the Apple design,” Birss said. “They are not as cool.”

Apple is fighting patent lawsuits around the globe against rivals including HTC Corp. (2498) and Samsung as it competes for dominance of the smartphone and tablet computer markets. The firms have accused each other of copying designs and technology in mobile devices. Together, Samsung and Apple make more than half of the smartphones sold worldwide, according to IDC, a Framingham, Massachusetts-based market researcher.

Samsung said the judgment affirms its position that the Galaxy doesn’t infringe Apple’s design rights.

“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,” Suwon, South Korea-based Samsung said in an e-mailed statement.

The judge said in his ruling that Samsung’s products were distinctive because they were thinner and had “unusual details” on the back. Apple now has 21 days to appeal against the ruling.