Last week Apple had a scare as Proview Technology (Shenzhen) had filed a trademark infringement case stating that they owned the “iPad” trademark before Apple did in China. The iPads started to disappear from shelves because all retailers had to stop selling them for legal reasons. Some were hiding them and selling them under the table, while others had them removed by authorities.
Good news for Apple though, the Shanghai Pudong New Area People’s Court denied a request by Proview Technology (Shenzhen) for the injunction and agreed to Apple’s request that the trademark infringement case be suspended pending a ruling in a separate case in a higher court.
This means the iPads will be back on the shelves in Shanghai until the case is settled. It’s not yet known what will happen with the trademark issues, but Apple will now have some breathing room to deal with the case in court while their products continue to be sold.