We reported in February this year that Apple could be in legal hot water over the iPad if they were ever to launch it on the mainland. The problem then was Shenzhen Great Long Brother not being happy with the overall look of the iPad when compared to it’s own tablet device. Nothing came of that legal threat, but now Apple have trademark problems with Hong Kong based Proview.
Proview claim to own the rights to the iPad name and are planning a ton of legal pain if Apple don’t cease iPad sales. 10 Billion Yuan ($1.5 Billion) worth of legal pain to be exact.
Gizchina News of the week
A share holder of the company named Li Su claims the iPad name was registered back in 2001 way before iPad plans ever became public.
Li has demanded in a public letter to Apple that they “immediately stop its rights infringement activities” and open up communications channels to the rightful owners of the iPad name so they can come to a financial arrangement.
The strange twist is that Apple had already paid over $55,000 to Proview’s Taipei branch to transfer ownership of the iPad name to them back in 2007.
This is the second time Apple have had iPad trademark problems the first time against Fujitsu and it’s iPad cell phone device.
So are Proview pulling a fast one? Or are Apple really in for legal problems in China?
via: China.org.cn
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