It looks like Apple’s arguments yesterday in court worked as the Shanghai Pudong New Area People’s Court is going to allow the company to keep selling iPads in the city. Three out of the five Apple stores in China are in Shanghai so this a massive win for the company.
Reuters is reporting that sources in China are saying that Apple has won its first major battle against Proview. If you’ve been following the story at all, this is a major win for Apple as they had been ruled against in the smaller courts across the country.
As we reported yesterday, Apple was arguing that Proview didn’t own the rights to the iPad name. Apple had acquired the iPad name from Proview’s Taiwanese branch and the sale accounted for all the Asian countries that the name was used in. Proview claims that the Taiwanese branch had no right to sell the Chinese trademark.
While Apple has avoided an injunction against the sale of their massively successful iPad, they’re still fighting another case in the Shanghai courts. Proview is seeking compensation from Apple for what they see as trademark infringement. It remains to be seen if the court will side with Proview or Apple in regards to that decision.
Regardless, this is great news for Apple as it would allow them to sell the iPad 3 in China. The device is already rumored for a March launch and an injunction now would have thrown a monkey wrench into their plans.
It almost looks like we’re at the end of the legal drama between Proview and Apple. We’ll keep you updated on any developments. I doubt that Proview will be able to take the case to U.S. courts now after this ruling, so expect a settlement within the next few days.