Legal Archives - Gizmochina

Xiaomi addresses TV Boot Advertisements amid legal pressure

Soumyakanti — Wed, 11 Oct 2023 15:33:41 +0000

Several smart TV manufacturers have come under scrutiny for their practice of displaying advertisements when the TV is turned on, known as boot advertisements.

These ads can be frustrating as they slow down TV startup and disrupt the user experience. They serve as a revenue-generating tactic for manufacturers and content providers to promote products and services to users upon TV activation.

Notably, regulatory bodies in China have been pushing for changes in this area. For example, the Jiangsu Consumer Protection Commission recently urged TV manufacturers to include a “one-click turn-off” feature for these advertisements.

Xiaomi’s Proactive Response to Boot Advertisements

LeTV, a TV brand that did not comply with this directive, faced legal consequences. A court ruling mandated that LeTV should ensure the presence of a “one-click turn-off feature” for their boot advertisements, emphasizing consumer rights in the media space.

In response to such regulatory pressures, Xiaomi has announced modifications to its TV offerings. Xiaomi TV now reportedly provides an option to “disable boot advertisements.” This change is seen as a significant step in addressing consumer concerns and adhering to legal requirements.

A relevant point in this regard is Article 44, Paragraph 2 of China’s Advertising Law, which clearly stipulates that any ads shown as pop-ups on internet-based platforms need to have an easily accessible close button, ensuring users can dismiss them with a single click.

Chen Yinjiang, the Deputy Secretary-General of the Consumer Rights Protection Law Research Association of the China Law Society, has previously expressed his views on this matter. In a conversation with CCTV, he highlighted the responsibility of TV manufacturers towards their consumers. According to Yinjiang, not only should information be presented truthfully and comprehensively, but consumers should also have the ability to decide if they wish to view these boot advertisements and for how long.

According to a recent report, Chinese TV sales in August 2023 dropped by 20% compared to the previous year, with about 2.95 million units sold online. Traditional brands, including Xiaomi and Hisense, were dominant, with Hisense leading in monthly sales, narrowly surpassing Xiaomi. Both brands have been key players in the Chinese TV market for years. The top four brands focused on 100-inch TVs, indicating a market trend.

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Apple wins appeal court ruling against Epic Games over anti-trust battle

Jeet — Tue, 25 Apr 2023 01:41:31 +0000

In a new development over the legal battle between Apple and Epic Games, an appeals court has ruled in favor of Apple in regard to the App Store rules.

With the courts siding with the Cupertino-based technology giant, it is likely that there won’t be any major changes in the commission that the company charges to app developers.

Commenting about this new development, Apple spokesman said, “Today’s decision reaffirms Apple’s resounding victory in this case, with nine of 10 claims having been decided in Apple’s favor. For the second time in two years, a federal court has ruled that Apple abides by antitrust laws at the state and federal levels.”

Apple had won the initial court battle a couple of years back and now the Ninth Circuit Court affirmed that decision where it was said that the company did not violate antitrust law by banning competing app marketplaces on iPhones.

Epic Games sued Apple after the game developer had introduced its own payment system into Fortnite to avoid paying a 30% commission to Apple for each transaction. By doing so, the company broke Apple’s rules, and ultimately the developer was banned from the App Store. After that, Epic Games sued Apple and received support from a few other developers who also faced issues with Apple’s rules.

Xiaomi strikes global licensing deal with InterDigital to settle lawsuit

Sean — Wed, 04 Aug 2021 11:19:32 +0000

Xiaomi and InterDigital have recently struck a global licensing deal. The move from the brand enables it to resolve legal disputes between the two companies over Xiaomi’s use of InterDigital’s patents that cover various mobile technologies.

According to a RCRWireless report, the Chinese tech giant has entered into a global licensing deal with InterDigital to settle lawsuit that both companies were involved in. This lawsuit was filed in China and in India over different aspects of the technology use and licensing rates of some of InterDigital’s standard essential patents (SEPs). Through the new agreement, both firms have agreed to dismiss all pending legal disputes. Furthermore, the licensing agreements covers InterDigital’s SEPs for 3G, 4G, and 5G cellular, along with Wi Fi and High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC).

Paul Lin, Xiaomi’s VP of global business development and IP strategy stated that “Xiaomi has continuously invested in core standards research to emerge as a top contributor to standard essential technologies in the world.” He further added that “In the past year, the Xiaomi and InterDigital teams worked hard to understand each other’s needs and diligently seek to narrow the gaps. I’m glad, now that all disputes are resolved between the two parties, Xiaomi can remain laser-focused on bringing innovative products to market.

Similarly, InterDigital’s chief licensing officer, Eeva Hakoranta said that the company is “very pleased to conclude this agreement with Xiaomi, which recognizes our long-term investment in research and innovation in standards-based technologies and the strength and breadth of our patent portfolio across several key technologies.”

ByteDance says freeze on bank accounts in India is illegal and amounts to harassment

Jeet — Mon, 05 Apr 2021 06:33:20 +0000

ByteDance, the parent company of the popular short video social media platform TikTok, has told the Indian court that the freeze on its bank account in the country by the government amounts to harassment.

As per the court filing, the Chinese giant says that the freeze on its bank accounts in a probe of possible tax evasion amounts to harassment and was done illegally. India’s tax intelligence unit ordered HSBC and Citibank in Mumbai to freeze bank accounts of ByteDance India as it probed some of the unit’s financial dealings.

The company has challenged the freeze on the four accounts in a Mumbai court. ByteDance had reduced its Indian workforce after the government maintained a ban on TikTok which was imposed last year amid a border clash between India and China.

Because of the account freeze, none of ByteDance India’s employees have been paid their March salaries, claims report from Reuters citing two people familiar with the matter. The company told the court it has a workforce of 1,335, including outsourced personnel.

The company told the High Court that authorities acted against the company without any material evidence and gave no prior notice, as required by Indian law. It added that blocking accounts “during the process of investigation amounts (to) applying undue coercion” and is “intended, improperly, to harass the petitioner.”