• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechFortune 500

Apple Sued In China For Allegedly Copying iPhone 6 Design

By
Don Reisinger
Don Reisinger
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Don Reisinger
Don Reisinger
Down Arrow Button Icon
June 16, 2016, 3:11 PM ET
Apple Starts iPhone 6 Sales In Germany
A shopper tries out the new Apple iPhone 6 at the Apple Store on the first day of sales of the new phone in Germany on September 19, 2014 in Berlin, Germany. Photograph by Sean Gallup — Getty Images

Apple is in a court battle in China that isn’t going so well.

Baili, a Chinese device maker, has sued Apple (AAPL) for allegedly copying its smartphone design in the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. A Chinese court recently granted Baili an injunction that would have forced Apple to remove the iPhone 6 line from store shelves. However, Apple quickly appealed the ruling to a higher court, which will allow it to continue selling the iPhone 6 line until that court makes its own ruling on the case.

Gadget site Engadget previously reported on the lawsuit.

The smartphone in question is Baili’s 100C, which sells under the 100+ brand. The device has a somewhat similar design to the iPhone 6 with a big screen, a black bezel around the display, and a thin body. However, Baili’s smartphone also looks rather similar to many other Android-based devices on the market.

According to a posting on Tenna, a China-based e-commerce site, the 100C went on sale in April 2014. Apple’s iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus went on sale in the fall of 2014, which Baili has noted in its argument against Apple.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

Oddly, the Baili lawsuit doesn’t include the iPhone 6s or iPhone 6s Plus, though those devices have the same design as the iPhone 6 line.

Winning in a local court in China isn’t necessarily uncommon for Chinese companies. Indeed, several lawsuits by Chinese companies against U.S. technology giants including Apple and Tesla (TSLA), haven’t turned out so well in lower courts for the American firms. However, when the cases reach a higher court, they’re often overturned. Exactly why there’s such a difference in rulings across lower courts and higher courts is unknown.

Still, after winning the first case, Baili is on the offensive, forcing Apple to show that its iPhone 6 doesn’t infringe and should remain on store shelves.

If it prevails, Apple’s iPhones will remain on shelves alongside Baili’s. However, an Apple loss could result in Apple being forced to take the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus out of Chinese stores. Baili might also be entitled to damages, although a court would ultimately decide on the final figure.

For more on Apple, watch:

For now, though, the companies are preparing for their next legal battle, which likely won’t be resolved for months.

While Baili was unreachable at the time of publication, Apple declined Fortune‘s request for comment on the lawsuit on Thursday. However, the company reversed course and issued the following statement to Fortune on Friday confirming our earlier report: “iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus as well as iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus and iPhone SE models are all available for sale today in China. We appealed an administrative order from a regional patent tribunal in Beijing last month and as a result the order has been stayed pending review by the Beijing IP Court.”

Update 06/17/16 at 11:02 a.m. ET to include Apple’s new statement.

About the Author
By Don Reisinger
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.


Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Big Tech
The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative cut 70 jobs as the Meta CEO’s philanthropy goes all in on mission to 'cure or prevent all disease'
By Sydney LakeFebruary 1, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Success
U.S. Olympic gold medalist went from $200,000-a-year sponsorship at 20 years old to $12-an-hour internship by 30
By Orianna Rosa RoyleFebruary 1, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
'I just don't have a good feeling about this': Top economist Claudia Sahm says the economy quietly shifted and everyone's now looking at the wrong alarm
By Eleanor PringleJanuary 31, 2026
3 days ago
placeholder alt text
Future of Work
Ford CEO has 5,000 open mechanic jobs with up to 6-figure salaries from the shortage of manually skilled workers: 'We are in trouble in our country'
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJanuary 31, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Ryan Serhant starts work at 4:30 a.m.—he says most people don’t achieve their dreams because ‘what they really want is just to be lazy’
By Preston ForeJanuary 31, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Energy
Top energy expert says probability the U.S. will attack Iran soon is 75% as risk of major disruption to oil supply is priced in — 'this one is real'
By Jason MaFebruary 1, 2026
23 hours ago

Latest in Tech

schlicht
AIBots
Meet Matt Schlicht, the man behind AI’s latest Pandora’s Box moment—a social network where AI agents talk to each other
By Nick LichtenbergFebruary 2, 2026
16 minutes ago
Andy Jassy speaks onstage.
AILabor
If AI is roiling the job market, the data isn’t showing it, Yale Budget Lab report says, raising questions of ‘AI-washing’ to justify mass layoffs
By Sasha RogelbergFebruary 2, 2026
17 minutes ago
AIOpenAI
Nvidia CEO denies ‘nonsense’ report he’s unhappy with OpenAI: ‘I really love working with Sam’
By Jason MaFebruary 2, 2026
2 hours ago
a person holds a smartphone displaying the Moltbook logo
CybersecurityTech
Top AI leaders are begging people not to use Moltbook, a social media platform for AI agents: It’s a ‘disaster waiting to happen’
By Eva RoytburgFebruary 2, 2026
2 hours ago
Photo of Donald Trump
InnovationPolitics
It took the U.S. decades to respond to the 1970s energy shock with a strategic oil reserve, now it’s rerunning that playbook with rare earths
By Tristan BoveFebruary 2, 2026
2 hours ago
Sam Altman is standing with his arms folded.
AIOpenAI
OpenAI launches Codex app to bring its coding models, which were used to build viral OpenClaw, to more users
By Beatrice NolanFebruary 2, 2026
3 hours ago