Samsung Electronics Co. filed anappeal against a German court's ban on sales of its Galaxytablet computers, and accused Apple Inc. (AAPL) of patent infringementin Australia, deepening disputes between the companies oversmartphone technology.

The company filed the appeal yesterday against a courtruling won by Apple to block Galaxy Tab sales in Germany, JamesChung , a Seoul-based spokesman for Samsung, said by phone today.The South Korean company also filed yesterday a cross claim withthe Federal Court of Australia alleging Apple's iPhone and iPadinfringe seven patents related to wireless communicationsstandards, it said in an e-mail.

Apple, based in Cupertino, California, and Samsung havebeen embroiled in a global battle over market share for bothphones and tablet computers. Apple has accused Samsung of"slavishly" copying the iPad and iPhone and has had success incurtailing Galaxy sales in Australia and Germany. There are alsolawsuits pending in the U.S. and Asia.

"Samsung has a proud history of innovation in the mobileindustry," the Suwon, South Korea-based company said afterfiling the Australian suit. "It has invested continuously inRD, design and technology to produce our innovative andcutting-edge mobile devices."

Samsung is also trying to invalidate and revoke Applepatents that have been asserted against Samsung's Galaxy phonesand tablets in Australia.

The appeal filed with a Dusseldorf court follows a Sept. 9ruling upholding the temporary nationwide sales ban on theGalaxy Tab 10.1 issued a month earlier.

Apple has also won an injunction in Germany against theGalaxy Tab 7.7, the latest version with a smaller screen thanthe Tab 10.1 and the iPad, forcing Samsung to pull the productout of the IFA consumer-electronics show in Berlin earlier thismonth.

Steve

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