A Chinese technology firm has filed a legal
challenge accusing US giant Apple of infringing its patented voice
recognition software with its Siri function on the iPhone, the company
said Saturday.
The move comes just days after Apple paid $60 million to end a dispute over who could use the iPad name in China.
Shanghai Zhizhen Network Technology Co Ltd
patented its Xiao i Robot software in 2004, while Apple's Siri, which
made its debut with the release of the iPhone 4S last year, was first
developed in 2007.
The Chinese company's version operates in a
similar way to Apple's personal assistant and works on the iOS and
Android operating systems.
Si Weijiang, a lawyer acting for the
Shanghai-based firm, said it had tried to contact Apple two months ago
over the alleged infringement but received no response.
"We sent legal notices to Apple in May, but
no one contacted us. We filed the lawsuit in late June to the Shanghai
number one intermediate people's court," Si told AFP. "Currently the
case is now at the court-mediated stage."
"We mainly ask Apple to stop infringing on
our patent and cover the court costs, but once the court confirms Apple
has infringed on our patent, we will propose compensation," he added.
The company's chairman, Yuan Hui, told the Apple Daily newspaper that the firm had 100 million users in China.
"People feel that China has no innovation,
that companies here just copy. But in fact, we are leaders in our field,
and we have created our own innovation," Yuan told the paper.
It added that Apple was also facing legal
action from another Chinese company for allegedly infringing its "Snow
Leopard" trademark.
The High Court of the southern province of
Guangdong said on Monday that Apple had paid $60 million to settle a
long-running legal battle with Chinese computer maker Shenzhen Proview
Technology over the iPad name.
Both Proview, based in the southern city of
Shenzhen, and Apple had claimed ownership of the Chinese rights to the
"iPad" trademark.
Proview's Taiwanese affiliate registered
"iPad" as a trademark in several countries including China as early as
2000 -- years before Apple began selling its hugely successful tablet
computer.
Analysts said the Chinese government wanted
the matter resolved, wary of the damage a ruling against Apple could do
for the foreign business climate in China.
Greater China -- which includes Hong Kong and
Taiwan -- has become Apple's fastest-growing region, with revenues
second only to the United States.
© 2012 AFP
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© 2012 AFP
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