Apple has lost its appeal in the UK against the High Court decision ruling that the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 does not infringe the registered design rights for the iPad.
And this now means that the US company must go ahead with Judge Birss' original command to publish a notice on its own website for six months and take out adverts in various major magazines and newspapers proclaiming that Samsung did not infringe its rights.
Three judges were involved in the case held before the Court of Appeal, with one admitting that he even owns an iPad. This particular judge, Sir Robin Jacob, also explained the reason behind turning down Apple's appeal against the original ruling.
"Because this case (and parallel cases in other countries) has generated much publicity, it will avoid confusion to say what this case is about and not about," he said.
"It is not about whether Samsung copied Apple's iPad. Infringement of a registered design does not involve any question of whether there was copying: the issue is simply whether the accused design is too close to the registered design according to the tests laid down in the law.
"So this case is all about, and only about, Apple's registered design and the Samsung products," he added.
Samsung is, naturally, thrilled at the outcome.
"We continue to believe that Apple was not the first to design a tablet with a rectangular shape and rounded corners and that the origins of Apple's registered design features can be found in numerous examples of prior art," a company spokesperson stated.
"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."
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