Apple granted ex-parte injunction barring Galaxy sales in Europe

Apple stepped up its intellectual property battle with Samsung Electronics by getting an ex-parte temporary injunction barring the sales of the South Korean technology giant's flagship Galaxy tablet in the European Union except the Netherlands and the UK.

The Düsseldorf court order comes a week after Apple obtained a similar ruling in Australia, which has forced Samsung to delay the Australian launch of its Galaxy tablet.

With courts rulings pending on similar patent suits in South Korea, Japan, the US International Trade Commission and the court of the North District of California, the German ruling deals a critical blow to Samsung in its effort to snatch a sizable market share in the tablet market.

The temporary injunction is for alleged violation of a European Community design that covers the iPad and the iPhone.

Apple also alleges that the Samsung tablet infringes 10 separate patents such as data transmission and wireless technology.

Apple said in a statement, "It's no coincidence that Samsung's latest products look a lot like the iPhone and iPad, from the shape of the hardware to the user interface and even the packaging. This kind of blatant copying is wrong, and we need to protect Apple's intellectual property when companies steal our ideas."