Beijing (dpa) – A provincial court in southern China on Wednesday heard an appeal by Apple against a lower court's decision that Proview Technology (Shenzhen) owned the iPad trademark for the country. The Guangdong provincial higher court opened the hearing on Wednesday morning, but it was not known how long the proceedings would take. The appeal is the latest in a string of legal cases between Apple and a group of companies under Hong Kong-listed Proview International Holdings. A court in Shanghai last week failed to support Proview Technology's petition to ban Apple from selling the iPad in China, suspending the case until after the hearing by the Guangdong provincial court. Proview Electronics, another company owned by Proview International Holdings, has also filed a lawsuit in California accusing Apple of deception during its purchase of the iPad trademark via an intermediary company. Lawyers for Proview Technology earlier said the company planned to continue legal action in China until it had negotiated a settlement with Apple. The lawyers said Proview Technology (Shenzhen)'s action against Apple was driven by eight Chinese banks, who were owed a combined 380 million yuan (60 million dollars), according to the popular Sina.com website. Proview said it registered the iPad trademark in China in 2001, but state media said Proview Technology (Taiwan) sold international rights to the trademark to a British firm in 2009. The British firm reportedly resold the trademark to Apple, which launched the iPad in 2010, but Proview Technology (Shenzhen) insisted that it still held the trademark in China. Apple accused Proview of reneging on an agreement to transfer the trademark. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/ie67G Tags: Apple, China, Court, iPad, Trademark Section: East Asia, Latest News, Tech
