After a Beijing court ruled in favor of Chinese leather goods maker Xintong Tiandi Technology recently, Apple wants to file a suit in China’s highest court for its exclusive right to the “IPHONE” trademark.
According to the final judgment of the Municipal Higher People’s Court in Beijing last Sunday, Apple lost the lawsuit over the trademark “IPHONE” against Xintong Tiandi. This means it is legal for Xintong Tiandi to make and sell leather handbags, wallets and phone cases with the brand IPHONE on them.
In October 2002, Apple applied for the “iPhone” trademark at the Trademark Office of The State Administration for Industry & Commerce of the People’s Republic of China. But it was not until November 2013 that the Trademark Office approved Apple for use of the term iPhone on certain pieces of computer hardware and software.
On the other hand, Xintong Tiandi applied to the Trademark Office for the use of “IPHONE” on goods including wallets, pocketbooks and passport holders in September 2007. The company received approval in April 2010.
Apple raised an objection to the Trademark Office about that decision, but it was rejected. So Apple appealed to the higher local court, but it failed again.
According to The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday, Apple said it is disappointed in the ruling and plans to file another suit to China’s highest court, the Supreme People’s Court.
Apple’s failure in the trademark battle came after a decline in its revenue and smartphone sales according to its Q2 2016 financial report. The company’s revenue from iPhones was USD 32.8 billion for the quarter, representing an 18.4% YoY decline, and it sold 51.1 million iPhones, a 16.3% YoY decline.
(Top photo from price.com.hk)
