Apple faces a total ban on iPhone sales in China

Dark clouds have hung over Apple's business in China. Xiaoi Robot sued the IT giant eight years ago for infringing its patent rights to its Siri voice assistant. The company is owned by Shanghai Zhizhen Intelligent Network Technology Co. which recently filed a lawsuit in China's Supreme People's Court demanding Apple pay it more than $1.5 billion for patent infringement.

What the dispute is about

Siri software was created in 2007 and was originally used for text chatting. In 2010, Siri was purchased by Apple for $200 million and subsequently, through a partnership with Nuance, became a personal assistant.

Over the years, since 2011, Apple has continually added the Siri voice assistant to its products and made it a major feature of the iPhone. But in 2004, Shanghai Zhizhen applied for Chinese patent ZL200410053749.9 for Little i Robot, which was approved in 2009. According to the plaintiff, Apple is infringing this patent.

Court Response

Shanghai Zhizhen asks the Supreme People's Court of the People's Republic of China to impose an injunction on the manufacture, import and sale of iPhone smartphones that infringe patent ZL200410053749.9. The Supreme People's Court granted the request for an injunctionwhile the hearing of the case is ongoing.

If Shanghai Zhizhen ultimately wins the case, Apple could face the prospect of a complete ban on sales of its flagship iPhone product in China, an extremely important market for the Cupertino-based company.

Source: xfastest