Apple has appealed a Chinese court decision that awarded the Encyclopedia of China Publishing House with $84,000 (RMB 520,000), arguing that it shouldn’t be held responsible and the amount is too high, the Jinghua Times reports.
The encyclopedia publisher had won the initial ruling in September. It filed suit against Apple after discovering its work pirated on the App Store. Though Apple argued that, as the store operator, it wasn’t to blame for the infringement, the court found the company guilty because it had profited from the sales. According to the report, Apple will keep the same line of reasoning in its appeal with the higher court.
While the $84,000 in damages would hardly put a dent in Apple’s sizable cash hoard, the ruling could create an ominous precedent that might open the company up to lawsuits from other parties who have suffered infringements on the App Store.
The Next Web has contacted Apple for comment regarding the appeal. After the judgment in September, the company had said in a statement
“The App Store offers customers in China access to an incredible selection of over 700,000 apps created by Apple’s developer community. As an IP holder ourselves, Apple understands the importance of protecting intellectual property and when we receive complaints, as we did in this case, we respond promptly and appropriately.”
Image credit: Mario Tama / Getty Images
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