Samsung Galaxy phones facing European sales ban
Samsungs bitter dispute with Apple over alleged patent infringements has stepped up a gear with a court in Holland banning the sale of the Galaxy S, Galaxy S II and Galaxy Ace.
The ban will come into force in seven weeks time after Apple filed a claim for patent infringement relating to the way photos are displayed on mobile devices.
In a victory for Samsung however the court dismissed all other patent infringement claims filed by Apple.
Surprisingly Samsung has welcomed the judgement saying in a statement: “Today's ruling is an affirmation that the Galaxy range of products is innovative and distinctive.
"With regard to the single infringement cited in the ruling, we will take all possible measures including legal action to ensure that there is no disruption in the availability of our Galaxy smartphones to Dutch consumers."
Samsung uses the Netherlands as a logistics hub for distribution throughout the EU with the ban affecting sales to the firms subsidiaries in the UK, France, Germany, Finland, Ireland, Lichtenstein, Luxemburg, Monaco, Sweden and Switzerland.
This means that id Samsung wishes to continue selling the products in these territories it will have to divert its logistics chain around Holland.
Google may have to issue an urgent update to its Android operating system, which uses the same photo management system, in light of the decision.