Chinese court rules against iPads sales

PanARMENIAN.Net - Apple's dispute over the iPad trademark deepened Monday, February 20 after the Chinese company that claims ownership of the name said it won a court ruling against sales of the popular tablet computer in China, AP reported.

Xie Xianghui, a lawyer for Shenzhen Proview Technology, said the Intermediate People's Court in Huizhou, a city in southern China's Guangdong province, had ruled on Friday that distributors should stop selling iPads in China.

The ruling, which was also reported widely in China's state media, may not have a far-reaching effect. In its battle with Apple, Proview is utilizing lawsuits in several places and also requesting commercial authorities in 40 cities to block iPad sales.

Apple Inc. said in a statement Monday that its case is still pending in mainland China. The company has appealed to Guangdong's High Court against an earlier ruling in Proview's favor. Apple insists it holds the trademark rights to the iPad in China.

So far, iPads have been pulled from shelves in some Chinese cities but there has been no sign of action at the national level.

Shenzhen Proview Technology is a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based Proview International Holdings. It registered the iPad trademark in China in 2001 and says the name was used for a computer described as an "Internet Personal Access Device" that employed touch panel technology.

The company says it plans to ask China's customs agency to block imports and exports of iPads.