James Delahunty
2 Dec 2011 4:41
Samsung had hoped to release the tablet for sale today at 4pm.
High Court Justice John Dyson Heydon today extended a ban on the release of Samsung's Galaxy Tab 10.1, taking time to consider Apple Inc.'s request for permission to appeal the decision of a lower court that lifted the ban on the Samsung device late last week.
"A stay for one week will cost Samsung, in effect, one week's trade," Heydon said, following a 90-minute hearing in Sydney. He acknowledged that the stay would hurt Samsung but "not to extend the status quo is likely to be injurious to Apple."
Samsung had hoped to push plenty of the tablets into the Australian market this weekend in time for the busy holiday season. It had previously stated that if it cannot get its product into the Australian market for the Christmas period, then it would cancel its launch in the country altogether.
"This is a critical period of time," Katrina Howard, Samsung's lawyer, told Justice Heydon. "Even one day can make a difference."
Samsung said it believes that Apple has no basis for its application for leave to appeal.