ipad 3 boxReuters reports on the first public comments from a government official regarding Apple's dispute with Proview over ownership of the "iPad" trademark in China, with the official stating that according to Chinese law Proview is indeed the rightful owner of the trademark.

"According to the ... provisions of the China Trademark Law, currently Shenzhen Proview is the legal registrant of the iPad trademark," Fu Shuangjian, a deputy director of [the State Administration for Industry and Commerce], was quoted as saying at a news conference in Beijing. [...]

"This case has a huge impact and the final court ruling would directly influence who owns the iPad trademark. The commerce department will (take the matter) very seriously," said Fu, whose department governs market regulation and supervision.

Fu's comments are not an official ruling on the matter, as the case is still being tried in a Chinese court and settlement talks are reportedly underway, but his perspective could provide a hint about how the case will ultimately play out.

His comments do, however, leave some room for interpretation, potentially noting only that Proview remains listed as the trademark's owner in governmental records. In that context, his comments may simply be observational rather than outlining a position that Proview should ultimately retain those rights.

Apple claims that it obtained the Chinese trademark on the iPad name through a dummy corporation it set up to purchase various iPad trademarks from Proview's Taiwanese arm in the months leading up to the device's debut in early 2010. But Proview later argued that the Chinese right could not have been included in the deal because they were controlled by Proview's Shenzhen arm, despite the fact that officers participating in the deal were aligned with both companies.

A Hong Kong court ruled that Proview and its subsidiaries had conspired to extort additional money out of Apple once it became known that it was the ultimate purchaser of the rights, but Chinese courts are continuing to weigh the matter.

Related Roundup: iPad
Buyer's Guide: iPad (Don't Buy)
Related Forum: iPad

Top Rated Comments

GJessopp Avatar
156 months ago
I love how China is kicking the arse out of this case. This is coming from the country which infringes copyright on millions of products. Their market is swarming with fake copies of every consumer good there is worth buying. They don't have any right to sue anyone over copyright infringement.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jasontll Avatar
156 months ago
I am generally a fan of everything Apple, however, the simple fact that no one on this board seems to realize is that Apple is the villain here.

Apple acted in bad faith, disguising their ownership of "dummy" corporations in order to obtain world wide rights from ProView. If Apple had come to ProView, demanded a non-disclosure agreement, and then proceeded to negotiate a fair rate for the iPad trademark, there would be no dispute, but that is not what Apple did. They lied about who was buying these rights, and obtained the right to the iPad name everywhere but China. If their lawyers had been thorough, the Chinese rights would also have been obtained through this subterfuge, but they screwed up and now they should pay a hefty price for their lies and oversight.

Making misleading or false statements, or omitting material true statements, that, in light of the circumstances, would be misleading, is fraud. Apple is guilty. Would ProView outside China have sold so cheap if Apple had not disguised itself?

Apple is only in supposed settlement talks because they know they are in the wrong. Apple could crush them in court if they had a case, but they don't.

Dude obviously you haven't gone to business school before, that's a legit strategy. ;)
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
d0vr Avatar
156 months ago

Apple acted in bad faith, disguising their ownership of "dummy" corporations in order to obtain world wide rights from ProView.

Oh grow up and get with how the world works. This was standard business practises, nothing special about the way Apple acted here. If I were in business, I'd do exactly the same thing.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ouimetnick Avatar
156 months ago
I am generally a fan of everything Apple, however, the simple fact that no one on this board seems to realize is that Apple is the villain here.

Apple acted in bad faith, disguising their ownership of "dummy" corporations in order to obtain world wide rights from ProView. If Apple had come to ProView, demanded a non-disclosure agreement, and then proceeded to negotiate a fair rate for the iPad trademark, there would be no dispute, but that is not what Apple did. They lied about who was buying these rights, and obtained the right to the iPad name everywhere but China. If their lawyers had been thorough, the Chinese rights would also have been obtained through this subterfuge, but they screwed up and now they should pay a hefty price for their lies and oversight.

Making misleading or false statements, or omitting material true statements, that, in light of the circumstances, would be misleading, is fraud. Apple is guilty. Would ProView outside China have sold so cheap if Apple had not disguised itself?

Apple is only in supposed settlement talks because they know they are in the wrong. Apple could crush them in court if they had a case, but they don't.

The dummy corp was setup for a few reasons. If they came to Proview as Apple, then Apple would have to pay ridiculous amounts of money. Also it was done to keep confidentiality. You clearly can't trust Chinese officials. They are sneaky, and doubt they would even maintain confidentiality. It also would pretty much be clear that Apple is coming out with a product called iPad.

How is using a dummy corporate fraud. Its a little sneaky, but not against the law. Apple was perfectly with in the law to create a new company, and have them buy the trademark. Again, it is for confidentiality, and to pay a fair price, and not be ripped off by money hungry douche bags (Proview has already proved to be money hungry douche bags.)
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
keysofanxiety Avatar
156 months ago
Although I can't say I agree with all of Apple's legal battles, this is one I thought they should have won. So what does this mean? The thieving Proview company will get a billion-dollar settlement for a trademark name they sold in the first place? :mad:
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
surf2snow1 Avatar
156 months ago
Interesting.
I'm curious though, why doesn't Apple just buy the trademark?
It's not like they don't have enough cash laying around to do so.

You don't feed the trolls.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

reset password request iphone

Warning: Apple Users Targeted in Phishing Attack Involving Rapid Password Reset Requests

Tuesday March 26, 2024 4:34 pm PDT by
Phishing attacks taking advantage of Apple's password reset feature have become increasingly common, according to a report from KrebsOnSecurity. Multiple Apple users have been targeted in an attack that bombards them with an endless stream of notifications or multi-factor authentication (MFA) messages in an attempt to cause panic so they'll respond favorably to social engineering. An...
Generic iOS 18 Feature Purple

iOS 18: What to Expect From 'Biggest' Update in iPhone's History

Wednesday March 27, 2024 11:10 am PDT by
At least some Apple software engineers continue to believe that iOS 18 will be the "biggest" update in the iPhone's history, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Below, we recap rumored features and changes for the iPhone. "The iOS 18 update is expected to be the most ambitious overhaul of the iPhone's software in its history, according to people working on the upgrade," wrote Gurman, in a r...
maxresdefault

Apple to Launch New iPad Pro and iPad Air Models in May

Thursday March 28, 2024 11:07 am PDT by
Apple will introduce new iPad Pro and iPad Air models in early May, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman previously suggested the new iPads would come out in March, and then April, but the timeline has been pushed back once again. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Apple is working on updates to both the iPad Pro and iPad Air models. The iPad Pro models will...
maxresdefault

Apple Announces WWDC 2024 Event for June 10 to 14

Tuesday March 26, 2024 10:02 am PDT by
Apple today announced that its 35th annual Worldwide Developers Conference is set to take place from Monday, June 10 to Friday, June 14. As with WWDC events since 2020, WWDC 2024 will be an online event that is open to all developers at no cost. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. WWDC 2024 will include online sessions and labs so that developers can learn about new...
apple maps 3d feature

Apple Maps May Gain Custom Routes With iOS 18

Tuesday March 26, 2024 3:10 pm PDT by
Apple may be planning to add support for "custom routes" in Apple Maps in iOS 18, according to code reviewed by MacRumors. Apple Maps does not currently offer a way to input self-selected routes, with Maps users limited to Apple's pre-selected options, but that may change in iOS 18. Apple has pushed an iOS 18 file to its maps backend labeled "CustomRouteCreation." While not much is revealed...
General iOS 17 Feature Orange Purple

Apple Releases Revised Versions of iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 With Updated Build Number

Wednesday March 27, 2024 5:59 am PDT by
Apple on late Tuesday released revised versions of iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 with an updated build number of 21E237, according to MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris. The updates previously had a build number of 21E236. The revised updates are available for all iPhone and iPad models that are compatible with iOS 17 and iPadOS 17, but they can only be installed via the Finder app on macOS...
applephilschiller

Apple's Phil Schiller Works 80 Hours a Week Overseeing App Store

Wednesday March 27, 2024 2:03 pm PDT by
With the App Store and app ecosystem undergoing major changes in the European Union, The Wall Street Journal today shared a profile on App Store chief Phil Schiller, who is responsible for the App Store. Though Schiller transitioned from marketing chief to "Apple Fellow" in 2020 to take a step back from Apple and spend more time on personal projects and friends, he is reportedly working...