china

Chinese animation studio sues Apple over iTunes Store sales

A Chinese animation film studio has sued Apple for allegedly selling its movies in its iTunes store without permission.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, citing a report from the South China Morning Post, Shanghai Animation Film Studio, which is backed by the Chinese government, has sued Apple for more than $500,000. The company argues that Apple sold over 110 of its movies, including "Calabash Brothers" and "Black Cat Detective," in the iTunes store without permission.

Apple has faced its fair share of troubles in China. The company last year was forced to pay $60 million to settle a lawsuit with Proview … Read more

Chinese regulator calls for tighter oversight of Apple

A Chinese marketplace watchdog is calling for tighter supervision of Apple's consumer-rights practices as the state-controlled media continued its assault on the iPhone maker's after-sale policies.

The State Administration for Industry and Commerce issued a notice today that urged authorities to increase supervision of Apple's warranty policies, according to a report on China National Radio's Web site.

"Local authorities should investigate and punish illegal acts according to law," the notice said, according to state media reports.

The wave of criticism against the iPhone maker began earlier this month during a TV segment on state-run network China Central Television Station … Read more

U.S. law eyes government purchases of Chinese IT equipment

The U.S. government has decided that its agencies cannot buy IT equipment from overseas sources -- specifically China -- without approval from federal law enforcement.

The provision was tucked into a funding law signed this week by President Obama. The law requires that all federal agencies looking to buy IT equipment from companies overseas must undertake a formal "cyberespionage or sabotage" risk analysis with federal law enforcement. Once law-enforcement officials sign off, the purchase can be made.

The provision underscores the increasing concerns the U.S. appears to have with China. The assessment, in fact, must include &… Read more

U.S. approval of Sprint-Softbank deal may hinge on China

As a condition for approving Softbank's $20 billion acquisition of Sprint Nextel, the U.S. government is seeking oversight of network equipment purchases to prevent gear from Chinese suppliers Huawei Technologies and ZTE from becoming part of the U.S. infrastructure, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The two companies have already attracted the criticism of the U.S. House Intelligence Committee, which released a report last October that accused Chinese telecommunications gear makers of being threats to U.S. security and that discouraged U.S. companies from buying their equipment. In January, the U.S. Department of Justice … Read more

Communist Chinese media mouthpiece bashes Apple again

Three's usually a charm -- but not when you're talking about the government of China and Apple. For the third day running, the country's state-controlled media has taken a swipe at Apple, ostensibly over its warranty policy.

The Wall Street Journal refers to an article in the People's Daily, which describes Apple's defense of its policy as "arrogant." While that description might not shock people who follow the company closely, it's unclear why the official state organs have decided to cuff Apple around.

Under the heading "Apple unmoved by repairs complaints&… Read more

Apple lands in Chinese court to battle Siri patent suit

Apple is now squaring off against another legal adversary in China.

The iPhone maker appeared today at a Shanghai court hearing for a case in which it's accused of copying the voice-recognition software used for Siri, AFP reported.

Shanghai-based Zhizhen Network Technology has charged Apple with patent infringement, claiming that it holds the rights to the software in question.

Zhizhen says it patented its "Xiao i Robot" software, which is a "type of instant messaging chat bot system," back in 2004. Siri was developed in 2007. Apple bought the technology in 2010 and unveiled it … Read more

Apple's response to Chinese warranty complaint draws ire

Apple's warranty practices, and dealings with journalists, have brought the ire of one of China's largest media outlets.

Earlier today, The People's Daily -- which is owned by the Communist Party of China -- ran a story criticizing the iPhone and Mac maker for its response to issues raised about its warranty practices in the country.

Those issues came about during a TV segment on state-run network China Central Television Station earlier this month which claimed Apple repaired only broken or otherwise faulty parts within its products for customers in China, versus providing replacements in other countries. … Read more

China chooses Ubuntu as state-endorsed operating system

Canonical, the organization behind popular Linux distribution Ubuntu, is working alongside the Chinese government to deliver a state-endorsed operating system.

According to Canonical, it's working alongside the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology to bring a suitable Ubuntu version to China. The operating system, which will be known as Ubuntu Kylin, is expected to be released in April.

Ubuntu Kylin is part of a broader strategy on China's part to increase the adoption of open-source initiatives in the country, according to Canonical. China's ministry was deciding between several different Linux distributions before ultimately choosing Ubuntu.

"… Read more

South Korean cyberattack may not have come from China

South Korea apparently still has a mystery on its hands. Who launched a cyberattack against several of its banks and broadcasters this week?

Regulators for the country initially pointed the finger at China, saying that the attacks originated from a Chinese IP address. But they admitted today that they jumped the gun.

The IP address used in the attack was actually traced to one of the banks hit on Wednesday. South Korea's NongHyup Bank had been using the address as a virtual one for its internal network, according to Reuters. By coincidence, that address matched one registered in China.… Read more