Apple Settles iPad Suit

Apple will pay $60 million to settle a trademark dispute with a Chinese company over the iPad name, according to a Chinese court, potentially resolving a case that illustrated new intellectual-property challenges for foreign businesses in China.

An attorney for the China-based unit of a Hong Kong computer monitor maker, Proview International Holdings Ltd., said on Monday that the settlement had been reached via mediation. A post on the official microblog account of the Guangdong High People's Court's confirmed that settlement had been reached as well as the settlement amount, and said it took effect on June 25. If the settlement resolves other court fights between Proview and Apple related to the iPad name, it would remove a cloud over Apple in what has become a crucial market. High demand for iPhones and iPads has made China Apple's biggest market outside the U.S., representing 11.5% of Apple's global revenue in 2011, or roughly $12.5 billion. Apple shipped an estimated 4.1 million tablets there last year, according to research firm IDC.