Apple loses iPad design lawsuit against NT-K
Apple has lost an iPad design infringement lawsuit it brought against the small Spanish tablet maker, Nuevas Tecnologías y Energías Catalá. Nuevas created an Android-powered tablet called the nt-k Pad, which Apple believed was a knock off of the iPad. Interestingly, Apple filed not just a commercial lawsuit, but a criminal one against the company too. As noted by FOSS Patents:
Apple accused nt-k in November 2010 of "copying" the iPad and went straight for a customs ban. As a result, Spanish customs seized shipments from China containing nt-k's Android-based tablet. The little company temporarily appeared on an EU-wide list of product pirates, but worst of all, after some correspondence between the two companies, Apple also brought criminal charges on December 9, 2010 (as it had previously threatened in writing).
From the front, the nt-k does resemble the iPad, but with more buttons. However, there's no way anyone could mistake it for Apple's device once they saw the back of it and noticed its rather thick bulk. The Spanish court ruled that there wasn't "sufficient justification" for the case and threw it out of court. Yesterday, Nuevas posted a blog (Google translation) on their website that they had defeated Apple and now they are suing the Cupertino company for monetary damage compensation, lost profits, and "moral damages." The company is also urging the Spanish courts to pursue an antitrust investigation against Apple.
