Thursday Apple Rumors: German Judge Has Had It With Apple

Here are your Apple rumors and AAPL stock news items for Thursday:

German Judge Smacks Down Apple in Samsung Battle: Judge Johanna Brueckner-Hofmann of Dusseldorf is not impressed with Apple‘s (NASDAQ:AAPL) injunction against Samsung‘s (PINK:SSNLF) Galaxy Tab 10.1. Apple successfully blocked the Galaxy Tab from sale in Germany in September, so Samsung remodeled the device as the Galaxy Tab 10.1N. Surprising no one, Apple filed an injunction looking to block Samsung’s new tablet as well. According to a Bloomberg report (via 9 to 5 Mac), Brueckner-Hoffman has had it with Apple. “Consumers are well aware that there is an original and that competitors try to use similar designs, so buyers are vigilant when looking at products,” the judge said. “We don’t think that someone buys a Samsung to make his table neighbor at the coffee house believe he owns an iPad.” As the kids used to say in 1996: “Snap.”

USA TODAY Publisher Stockpiling iPhones/iPads: Gannett Blog, an independent website publishing information about USA TODAY publisher Gannett (NYSE:GCI), leaked an internal memo from the publisher on Thursday that said the company is stockpiling thousands of Apple’s iPhones and iPads for its employees. The memo said thousands of iPhone 4Ss, iPad 2s and netbook PCs were purchased for journalists in the past week. Accessories like Verizon‘s (NYSE:VZ) MiFi hotspots and accessories were stockpiled as well. The massive device purchase is intended to “help our journalists meet the demands of the new news cycle, one that requires agility in real-time reporting, social media, and greater emphasis on video storytelling.”

iPhone Market Share Shrinks in Europe: Though the iPhone 4S has boosted Apple’s market share in the U.S. and U.K., it didn’t help the Cupertino, Calif.-based company’s standings across continental Europe, according to a Thursday Reuters report. The iPhone’s share of the smartphone market in France shrank from 29% to 20%, and from 27% to 22% in Germany over the 12-week period that ended in November. The iPhone also lost share in Spain and Italy.

As of this writing, Anthony John Agnello did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned stocks. Follow him on Twitter at�@ajohnagnello�and�become a fan of�InvestorPlace on Facebook. For more from the company, check out our previous Apple Rumors stories.