By Ian Sherr and Spencer E. Ante

Proview Electronics Co. has taken its legal battles with Apple Inc. to a U.S. court, claiming the iPhone maker used deception in buying the iPad trademark and shouldn’t be allowed to keep it.

The lawsuit, which was filed in the Superior Court of the State of California in Santa Clara County on Feb. 17 but previously unreported, claimed that Apple had committed fraud when it used a company set up by one of its law firms, called IP Application Development Ltd., to purchase the iPad trademark from Proview on Dec. 23, 2009 for 35,000 British pounds ($55,000).

Proview, which included U.S.-based Proview Technology Inc. as a plaintiff in the case, said in its filing that by acquiring the iPad trademark through IP Application Development, and not explaining its true purpose, Apple acted “with oppression, fraud and/or malice.”

An Apple spokeswoman reiterated the company’s claim that it had rightfully purchased the iPad name from Proview, adding “Proview refuses to honor their agreement with Apple in China, and a Hong Kong court has sided with Apple in this matter.” A Proview spokesperson declined to comment.

Part of the reason for the case, people familiar with the matter said, was that during negotiations between the two companies, Apple hadn’t shared enough information about how it planned to acquire the trademark and who approved the purchase.

In emails seen by The Wall Street Journal, a representative purportedly of IP Application Development told Proview that it wanted to acquire the iPad name because it was an abbreviation of its company’s title, and that its future products wouldn’t compete with Proview’s products.

(Originally published Feb 24, 2012, on the Wall Street Journal website.)

By Ian Sherr and Stu Woo

Apple Inc. pulled its iPad 2 tablet from the websites of some unauthorized merchants in China, including Amazon.com Inc.’s Chinese site, in the latest challenge for the consumer-electronics giant in a key growth market.

Apple requested that the iPad 2 be removed from online storefronts because the sites weren’t authorized to sell the device, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The people said that the removal wasn’t related to a long-running dispute over the iPad trademark in China.

In addition to Amazon’s China site, which has a relatively small market share, the country’s second-largest business-to-consumer e-commerce company by sales, Jingdong, also stopped offering iPads. Although listings for iPads still appeared on Jingdong’s shopping site, 360buy.com, attempts to purchase an iPad through any of those listings Thursday produced a message saying the seller is out of stock.

Like Amazon, Jingdong isn’t an authorized reseller of the device.

Apple doesn’t disclose how much of its sales come from China, but the company has repeatedly identified China as one of its most important growth markets. The wider Asia-Pacific region accounted for 17% of the company’s net sales in the fiscal first quarter ended Dec. 31 and 19% in 2011. Amazon’s Chinese site had a market share of 2.1% in the third quarter compared to 13.3% for Jingdong, according to research firm Analysys International.

Given the small market share and the fact that iPads remain widely available in physical stores in China, the removal of the devices from the online stores isn’t likely to significantly dent Apple’s China sales.

But the development also comes as the Cupertino, Calif., company is embroiled in a legal spat with a Shenzhen, China-based subsidiary of Proview International Holdings Ltd., a computer-display maker, which claims it has the exclusive rights to the iPad name in China. The conflict intensified Tuesday, when Proview said it filed a request with China’s customs bureau to block the import and export of iPads across China’s borders.

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(Originally published Feb 16, in the Wall Street Journal.)

By Ian Sherr

What’s in a name like iPad?

Apple Inc. agreed to pay Proview International Holdings Ltd. £35,000 ($55,494 at current exchange rates) for the iPad trademark, according to a cache of documents that includes emails and a contract detailing an agreement between the two companies.

The newly unearthed documents come as Apple has been battling Proview over whether it purchased rights to the iPad name from Proview in 2009—a key issue in a dispute between the companies.

Proview defended its claims to the trademark in China, and suggested on Friday that the company could be due as much as $2 billion from Apple.

A Hong Kong court sided with Apple last year, saying the agreement between Proview and an Apple subsidiary was valid. But a court in mainland China threw out Apple’s case.

Proview, a computer display manufacturer that filed for bankruptcy, claims it has the exclusive rights to the iPad name in China and has sought injunctions against the import or export of Apple’s tablet device. A ban on the iPad’s export from China could have wide-ranging implications for Apple, which relies on manufacturers in the country to make many of the devices it sells around the globe.

Proview earlier this month attempted to bar the sale of iPads within China through a complaint filed with a Shanghai court, alleging that an earlier deal with Apple for the iPad trademark didn’t include the China market.

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(Originally published Feb 19, 2012, on the Wall Street Journal website.)

By Ian Sherr

SAN FRANCISCO—Apple Inc. has asked a telecommunications standards body to set basic principles governing how member companies license their patents, an increasingly contentious topic for rivals in the smartphone industry.

In a letter to the European Telecommunications Standards Institute, Apple said the telecommunications industry lacks consistent licensing schemes for the many patents necessary to make mobile devices, and offered suggestions for setting appropriate royalty rates that all members would follow.

Many mobile technology companies, such as Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., hold patents that became part of industrywide standards. Standards bodies often require the patent holders to offer to license their patents to any company on a basis known as Frand, or fair, reasonable and nondiscriminatory. Questions about such commitments have arisen amid a flurry of patent suits between rivals in the mobile-device market.

Apple said in its letter—which was dated Nov. 11 but not previously disclosed—that the lack of clarity on what is fair, reasonable and nondiscriminatory has led many companies to ask unusually high rates and sue one another, claiming they infringed on one another’s patents.

“It is apparent that our industry suffers from a lack of consistent adherence to Frand principles in the cellular standards arena,” wrote Bruce Watrous, Apple’s intellectual property head.

Apple’s move to solidify how industry-essential patent holders should act comes at a tumultuous time. The Cupertino, Calif., company has been battling rivals such as Samsung, Motorola and HTC Corp. in patent suits spanning courtrooms across the globe.

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(Originally published Feb 7, 2012, on the Wall Street Journal website.)

By Ian Sherr

Vizio Inc., which shook up the market with inexpensive high-definition televisions, now wants to become a computer manufacturer.

The Irvine, Calif., company, which ranks as one of the top sellers of televisions in the U.S., plans to show a line of thin laptop computers and all-in-one desktop PCs running Microsoft Corp.’s Windows software next week at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Vizio, which also produces Blu-ray players and a tablet, says it worked on its computer designs for two years in attempts to offer an aesthetic that competes with Apple Inc.’s popular products but at a lower price.

Vizio says it spent months, for example, shaving millimeters from its desktop computer so the central processing chip could hide in a sleek base while the screen stands attached to its thin aluminum neck.

“It doesn’t look mechanical or industrial,” said Matthew McRae, Vizio’s technology chief. “The industrial design is something we sweat.”

The closely held company said it is well aware it is entering an already crowded market. Hewlett-Packard Co., Lenovo Group Ltd., Dell Inc., Acer Inc., Toshiba Corp. and Asustek Computer Inc. are among the competitors that have staked out nearly all of the computer market. Most compete for attention from either price-conscious consumers or value-focused corporate customers.

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(Originally published Jan. 7, 2012, in the Wall Street Journal.)

By Ian Sherr

Videogame retailer GameStop Corp. plans to begin selling tablet-style computers as part of an effort to expand its gaming device offerings.

The company plans to begin selling tablets based on Google Inc.’s Android mobile operating system during the holiday season at 200 of its U.S. stores on Friday. GameStop’s pilot program will include specialized tablets made by Asustek Computer Inc., Acer Inc. and Samsung Electronics Inc.

The devices, which will sell for their typical sticker prices in competing stores, will come with a set of seven free games, including Electronic Arts Inc.’s “Dead Space” sci-fi shooter and “Madden NFL” football game, as well as links to the GameStop’s mobile application store, called “Kongregate Arcade,” and the Android app marketplace.

“Customers have been telling us that they like to game on multiple devices,” said J. Paul Raines, GameStop’s chief executive. “We believe there is a gaming opportunity on tablets.”

Analysts are more skeptical, citing poor sales of Android-based tablets and a dearth of games that have enticed the dedicated gaming audience that GameStop tends to attract. Cost is another factor, said Michael Pachter, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, who added that any asking prices around $400 or $500 will be challenging.

“I don’t think anyone is going to buy one,” he said.

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(Originally published Oct. 31, 2011, in the Wall Street Journal.)

By Jessica E. Vascellaro and Ian Sherr

Apple Inc. executives and advisers rallied employees to maintain Steve Jobs’s legacy on Wednesday, as the celebrations of the Apple co-founder’s life continued two weeks after his death.

Tens of thousands of employees tuned into a private memorial for Mr. Jobs on Apple’s Cupertino, Calif., campus that was also streamed to offices and Apple retail store locations world-wide.

Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook, who took over as CEO as Mr. Jobs’s health worsened in August, got choked up as he discussed his friendship with Mr. Jobs and his desire for excellence, according to two employees who tuned in. Two Apple board members—former Vice President Al Gore and Bill Campbell, Mr. Jobs’s longtime friend who is chairman of Intuit Inc.— also spoke, according to the people who attended.

Mr. Campbell shared a story about “Siri,” the company’s “intelligent” personal assistant that Apple recently shipped with its new iPhone 4S. Mr. Campbell said when the company began development of Siri, Mr. Jobs demanded he try the product, while another executive said the voice-recognition wasn’t ready yet.

Mr. Jobs then asked Siri whether it was a man or a woman, according to Mr. Campbell, who said Siri responded that it hadn’t been assigned a gender yet.

In other remarks, Jonathan Ive, Apple’s senior vice president for industrial design, discussed some of Mr. Jobs’s quirks, including his high standards for hotels and penchant for making them switch to nicer ones on road trips, according to one attendee. Mr. Ive, who described Mr. Jobs as his best friend, said that his boss had a habit of calling some potential product designs “dopey,” according to one attendee. But when Mr. Jobs saw the iPhone, he was initially silent and then gave it the nod, Mr. Ive said.

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(Originally published Oct. 20, 2011 in the Wall Street Journal.)

By Ian Sherr

Apple plans to close some of its retail stores for at least an hour Wednesday, according to two people familiar with the matter, a gesture that coincides with the company’s planned celebration of co-founder Steve Jobs’s life at its headquarters.

Retail employees were informed that a private company event was scheduled and that the retail stores will temporarily close during that time, according to two people who work for Apple but aren’t authorized to speak on its behalf. One of the employees said the event would last for up to three hours.

Apple hasn’t told retail employees why it plans to temporarily close the stores during normal working hours, though these people note that such closings rarely happen for events other than special product launches. Some retail employees were told about the meeting over the phone rather than by a widely distributed internal message, one person said.

Apple is planning a celebration of co-founder Steve Jobs’s life at its Cupertino, Calif. headquarters Wednesday. Chief Executive Tim Cook said in an email to staff that the event, which comes two weeks after Jobs died following a long struggle with pancreatic cancer, was meant “to take time to remember the incredible things Steve achieved in his life and the many ways he made our world a better place.”

A small, private funeral was held on Oct. 7, followed by a much larger event for coworkers, friends and other industry executives last Sunday.

Apple reiterated that the celebration on Wednesday is for employees only.

(Originally published Oct. 18, 2011 in the Wall Street Journal and on wsj.com.)

By Ian Sherr and Geoffrey A. Fowler

The funeral for Steve Jobs, Apple Inc.’s co-founder, is taking place Friday, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The funeral is characterized as a small private gathering, this person said. The person wouldn’t say where or when the event was taking place, citing respect for Mr. Jobs and his family’s privacy.

The event comes two days after Mr. Jobs passed away after battling an undisclosed illness. He previously underwent surgery for pancreatic cancer and had a liver transplant.

Apple has said there are no public services planned.

In a letter to Apple’s employees on Wednesday, Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook said that the company is “planning a celebration of Steve’s extraordinary life” for staff that will take place soon.

Apple memorialized Mr. Jobs on its website after announcing his death, and has encouraged well-wishers to share memories and notes of condolence with a special email address.

(Originally published Oct 8. 2011 in the Wall Street Journal and on WSJ.com.)

By Ian Sherr

A new branding campaign from computer maker Dell Inc. takes a cue from Apple Inc.’s marketing playbook: It doesn’t talk about technology.

In one spot, a teenage girl talks about how she uses a Dell laptop to video chat with a boy she has a crush on. In another, a grandmother explains how she keeps in touch with her family using a Dell smartphone.

The campaign, dubbed “More You” and expected to begin Friday, is aimed at personalizing technology and marks a break in tradition for a company that got its start by commoditizing computers. Rather than focus on the specifications of products, Dell is hoping the campaign will encourage consumers to think about features and how they can be used.

“We realized it was important to connect more emotionally with customers,” said Paul-Henri Ferrand, who heads Dell’s consumer marketing efforts. “Most competitors are neglecting the fact that technology is empowering people’s lives.”

The Round Rock, Texas, company has been working to win more individual consumers—after relying heavily on corporate customers—and it wants to turn around a sagging image. Those efforts have begun to bear some fruit. The consumer sales unit turned a profit in the fiscal fourth quarter after struggling to control costs and entice customers. The growth continued in Dell’s most recent quarter, which ended April 29.

Dell’s reputation has fallen over the past three years and trails rivals Hewlett-Packard Co. and Apple in key areas such as perceived quality, reputation and overall satisfaction, according to BrandIndex, a daily tracking service. In recent months, however, Dell’s image has recovered slightly, a trend the Round Rock, Texas, company hopes the ad campaign will help to accelerate along with its larger corporate branding effort called “The Power To Do More,” launched last month.

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(Originally published July 5, 2011, in the Wall Street Journal.)