iPads seized from shelves by Chinese officials Officials have begun confiscating iPad devices from stores in China after a court ruled in December that Apple was guilty of infringing the trademark of Chinese monitor biz Proview. According to Hebei Youth Daily, officials from the Administrations of Industry and Commerce (AIC) raided a reseller in Shijiazhuang, clearing it …
"time to move production to... → #
a more friendly country like North Korea?"
Nigel R, i take it thats tongue in cheek but you do know there are already industrial parks on the boarders of North Korea don't you ?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaesong_Industrial_Region
OC the west wont let any high tech goods to be made/assembled there as they don't want the NC's to get the expertise or the manufacturing kit to make it easy.
and OC all the people here saying move assembly to "cheaper labour" country are forgetting that its by FAR the cheapest place right where it is, right now.... cha ching .
so far more initial and ongoing costs involved even if their could find somewhere else in the world that has anything like the massive infrastructural of china with masses of "cheaper labour" to buy up.
Of course, that would mean out-bribing their competitors there (which they certainly can do) but I believe this would infringe the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act which doesn't have an exception for doing business in China (and really only serves to make US companies less competitive in many environments).
So based on the premises provided of China not recognising Taiwan as a self-determining sovereign nation which can't be invaded. The Falkland islands which Argentina has never recognised as being self-determining and under the sovereignty of the UK, can simply "not-invaded" by some relocating troops from the Argentine Mainland?
When the Chinese government fled to Taiwan, after being booted out by the communists in 1947-48, they didn't accept that they were no longer the government of China. They were just suffering a temporary inconvenience, and would be back in charge of the whole country forthwith.
Meanwhile the Communists felt they now ruled the whole of China, and quietly ignored the fact that they didn't control this big island.
At the UN, Taiwan (as the Republic of China) was on the Security Council with veto, as one of the victorious powers of WWII. And the PRC didn't have representation, or recognition.
In the 70s that got reversed. Nixon went to China, they were brought into the international system, they got the seat in the UN, and the diplomatic recognition.
We now have the weird situation that the US is pledged to defend a country that I don't believe even they recognise diplomatically. Taiwan pays small countries to officially recognise it, rather than China, I'm not sure even they see themselves as a separate legal country. I'm no international lawyer, so I find this all a bit confuddling. But when a candidate for the Taiwanese Presidency announced that he'd consider a referendum on independence - China threatened invasion if he did. It caused lots of tension and sabre rattling. But what I take from that is that the current legal status is that they both claim to be the real China, it's just neither government quite controls the whole territory.
This is the kind of weird situation that makes it advisable to employ professional diplomats, lest your head explode, or you start a war by mistake...
For "payback is a bitch!".
Maybe Apple really does have valid use of the brand "iPad" from their agreement with Proview Taiwan, but if this case is ultimately decided against them, I for one will not be overly sad to see the litigious get litigated in return.
... a little payback for the 'special treatment' Chinese companies get in the US.,
Franky, I don't see any real issues here. A valid trademark has apparently been used without permission. Bit like those rounded corners.
Not saying the PRC has a perfect legal system... Detention without trial, torture, abuse and murder happen from time to time. Reminds me of British jurisprudence, really.
"cannot wrap brain around this concept."
what's hard about it ?, it's simple... someone in china Owns the legal ipad trademark there , and they make and sell products under that ipad name.....
now apple US want to sell their "counterfeit iPAD brand" (because as of right now that is exactly what it is) in to the same massively growing Chinese markets opening up now after failing to do do proper buyer be ware diligence in a sellers market.
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