Apple has struck another blow in its legal battle against Samsung, with a court prohibiting sales of the Korean vendor’s Galaxy Tab 10.1 anywhere in the EU bar the Netherlands.

 

A German court has agreed to Apple's request for a preliminary injunction on sales of the device, in an intellectual property ruling that can be applied throughout the European Union. The Netherlands is excluded from the ruling because Apple has launched a separate patent suit against Samsung in the country, Reuters reports.

 

Samsung has only just started rolling out the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Europe, with the device debuting in the UK last week. Adverts for the device were still running on the firm’s UK site this morning.

 

The court order comes days after Samsung agreed not to launch the device in Australia in response to an Apple court filing requesting an injunction.

 

Apple first sued Samsung in April, alleging that the Galaxy line of smartphones and tablets “slavishly” copies the iPhone and iPad design. In addition to the European and Australian actions, Apple has launched suits in South Korea and the US.

 

Samsung denies the allegations, and counter-sued Apple in June.