An unknown Chinese smartphone maker, Baili, accused hi-tech giant Apple Inc. of aping its design for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. The Chinese company states it developed a design for 100c smartphones which is protected by a patent. These gadgets are sold under a 100 Plus brand. The producer claims the latest iPhone series resembles greatly their own 100 Plus smartphones. So, Baili filed an administrative lawsuit against Apple to the Beijing Intellectual Property Office. The Chinese company stresses it submitted a patent application to the Chinese authority nine months earlier before Apple released its iPhone 6.
Meanwhile, Apple faces the challenge in China. Interestingly, experts do not rule out the possibility that it is Baili which copied Apple’s design due to leakage that occurred a few months before iPhone was rolled out. Nowadays, the design patent case for Baili’s 100Cs is under consideration. The Beijing Intellectual Property Office ordered Apple to halt selling the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus in Beijing. In response, Apple appealed against the ruling to the Beijing Intellectual Property Court. However, the most probable scenario suggests that China’s supervisory authority will rule in favor of the local producer. Importantly, China is the second largest sales market for Apple Inc. after the US.
