Apple has begun a court case in Beijing after the Chinese company Zhizhen Network Technology claimed that Siri, US firm’s intelligent personal assistant, is a copy of their voice system “Xiao i Robot.”
According to Zhizhenm, five Siri-powered Apple products, including the one on iPhone 4S, are a copy of “Xiao i Robot” for iOS and Android, which was first patented in 2004, three years before Siri appeared.
The Chinese firm is not claiming monetary compensation, but it requested that Apple stops developing and selling products which include Siri in China.
Meanwhile, Apple maintains that despite both products work in a similar way, they use different technologies.
"One can achieve the same results through various means. Apple has its own technology for Siri, which is totally different from the plaintiff's,” said Apple’s lawyer.
"Our main goal at the current stage is to let the court validate our claim regarding the infringement,” explained Yuan Yang, a lawyer representing Zhizhen. "We are not ruling out the possibility of mediation or compensation, but they are to be considered in the future,” he added.
Last year, Apple paid $60 million to the paid Chinese computer maker Shenzhen Proview Technology to settle a dispute over the “iPad” name, which was claimed by both companies.