Last week, a UK judge ruled that the design of Samsung"s Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet did not copy the deisgn of Apple"s iPad. He also slammed Samsung a bit, claiming that the Galaxy Tab is not as "cool" as the iPad.
Today, Bloomberg reports that the same judge has put in yet another twist in this case. Judge Colin Birss has ordered Apple to purchase and run ads in a number of UK-based newspaper and magazines that dispel the idea that the Galaxy Tab is a copy of the iPad. In effect, Apple has been ordered to pay for and run ads for Samsung"s Galaxy Tab.
The newspapers and magazines that will feature these ads include the Financial Times, the Daily Mail, the Guardian Mobile magazine, and T3. The ruling also ordered Apple to post a notice about the court"s decision on its website and keep it live for six months. It"s an order that obviously didn"t sit well with Apple"s lawyer Richard Hacon. He told the court today, “No company likes to refer to a rival on its website."
Apple has already said it plans to appeal the original ruling earlier this month, so it may be a little while before UK residents see these rather embarrassing ads.
Source: Bloomberg