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Apple settles Proview iPad trademark suit for $60 million

updated 07:24 am EDT, Mon July 2, 2012

Apple gets on with new iPad sales in China following settlement

Apple has settled with Proview for $60 million over alleged infringement of the iPad trademark in China, according to Reuters. Apple had claimed that it was the legal owner of the iPad trademark after buying naming rights from Proview in 2009 using a shell company. Although Apple has insisted its deal included the transfer of naming rights in mainland China, Proview asserted default control of the iPad name in the region.

In November a Chinese court ruled in Proview's favor stating that Proview's Shenzen division was the actual owner of the trademark, but had not been represented in Apple's deal with Proview's Taiwanese division at the time. Proview also initiated a lawsuit in the US, arguing that had the company known that Apple was behind the shell company IPADL that made the original deal, it would never have signed the rights over for the $55,000 price it agreed to. That case was thrown out.

Until the overnight announcement that Apple had settled with Proview, both parties had been in mediation talks for several weeks with both trying to avoid a court ruling. The $60 million figure happens to be close the amount owed by Proview to its creditors as it seeks to stave off bankruptcy. While the figure is much higher than the $16 million that Apple is rumored to have initially offered, it will now pave the way for the new iPad to go on sale in the crucial Chinese market, likely having been delayed pending the outcome of the case.

by MacNN Staff



  1. sibeale1

    Joined: Dec 1969


    A shakedown by another name... just another part of doing business. Proview knows this and so does Apple. Don't expect ethical behavior here or anywhere else where businesses can get away with it. Business ethics is an oxymoron. Businesses (even Apple) behave well only when they are required to do so. Just ask Enron, Google, or any other upstanding corporation.

  1. Geoduck

    Joined: Dec 1969


    Quite right

    Corporations are simple amoeba like organisms that feed on money. They will go after money wherever it is and do whatever they can to consume money. Customer satisfaction, workers rights, environmental concerns, they are just things in the way of or avector to gain money. Don't expect a corporation to be any more ethical than they have to be.

  1. global.philosopher

    Joined: Dec 1969


    And now....

    Preview can get down to business of going bankrupt.

    Comment buried. Show
  1. testudo

    Joined: Dec 1969


    Re: A shakedown

    Yeah, it couldn't be that Apple was trying to game the system, or could possibly be in the wrong. Nah. Must be proview who was in the wrong.

    It is amazing how every company suing Apple is in the wrong. Just amazing. I can't believe everyone just hates Apple so much. Jealous, I guess...

  1. prl99

    Joined: Dec 1969


    It's just a name

    Apple wasn't doing anything wrong, all they wanted was a name for their product and Proview wasn't using the name "iPad" since their product wasn't selling. Neither was anything else Proview used to sell. There's no way a word used to name a product should be worth $60M, that is just wrong. It doesn't matter how Apple got Proview to sell them the name in the first place or if Apple didn't receive all the rights, no word should cost any company that much money. Apple took one for the company to stop wasting more money in the Chinese court system; paying off the creditors like the authors suggested. Now Proview can finally RIP and Apple can finally sell an IPAD in China. (like I said, just words)

  1. facebook_Alan

    Via Facebook

    Joined: Jul 2012


    fly on a cow's back

    The 60 million will pave the way to make 6 billion. Nice to see this is settled.

  1. Tanker10a

    Joined: Dec 1969


    English Please...

    "However, although Apple has insisted its deal ..."
    It's one or the other and not both:
    "However, Apple has insisted its deal ..."
    "Although Apple has insisted its deal ..."

  1. msuper69

    Joined: Dec 1969


    Big deal...

    That works out to about $1 per iPad already sold.

  1. apostle

    Joined: Dec 1969


    Maybe someone can weigh in on...

    why it's better to spend large amounts of money on lawyers and fines than it is for two responsible adults to sit down and resolve a situation?


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