The long heater iPad trademark dispute between the Cupertino-based Apple and Taiwanese company Proview set to settle soon, after a Chinese court revealed that it is working on to push the two companies to reach an agreement.
“On the one hand, we are trying to process this case, and on the other, we are working on encouraging both sides to settle,” Zhao Le, an official at the foreign affairs office of the Higher People’s Court of Guangdong, told Businessweek.
“We started work, through the mediation of the court, on trying to get both sides to settle,” Roger Xie, a lawyer for Proview, said by phone. Before issuing rulings, Chinese courts typically initiate proceedings for litigants to settle, he said.
Earlier the application to have Proview declared bankrupt was rejected by a court in Shenzhen, which stated: “As it is too early to determine Proview lacks the ability to pay off its debts, the court does not accept Fubon’s request to liquidate Proview.”
Cash-strapped Proview had been taken to court by one of its creditors, Fubon Insurance, which could lead to have had significant bearing on its case with Apple over the issue. It had been suggested that Proview’s financial issues could halt the case and, despite the ruling, its other creditors may yet have significant influence on future developments with Apple.
