Apple rejects Samsung settlement offer in Australia

Apple has rejected an offer from Samsung that would see the patent dispute between the two companies in Australia come to an end. Reuters reports that the offer, made by Samsung last week, would have seen the South Korean company help ensure an expedited court hearing in return for the ability to immediately launch the Galaxy Tab 10.1—currently barred from sale thanks to a preliminary injunction—in the country. Both companies have since made it clear that no such bargain will be reached. “It is one we don’t accept and there is no surprise. The main reason we are here is to prevent the launch (of the Galaxy 10.1) and maintain the status quo,” Apple lawyer Steven Burley told the court. Samsung agreed to withdraw two allegedly infringing features of the Galaxy Tab 10.1, reducing the dispute to a single patent covering touchscreen technology.