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Apple faces new legal challenge in China

A Chinese technology company has filed a legal challenge accusing US technology giant Apple of infringing its patented voice-recognition software with its Siri function on the iPhone.

The move came 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 said it 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 Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android operating systems.

Si Weijiang, a lawyer acting for the Shanghai-based company, 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 said.

“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.