Court Orders Apple to Pull Part of Press Release in Qualcomm Case
Apple was ordered to stop using part of a press release that claims all iPhones would still be available in Germany through phone companies and resellers after it was banned from distributing some iPhone models the country.
Qualcomm, which won an iPhone ban in December, on Thursday obtained a preliminary injunction stopping its rival from using a statement that Apple distributed to the press in response to the initial ruling. The court said Apple’s release was misleading because the December judgment also ordered Apple to recall the products from resellers, according to the decision seen by Bloomberg and Reuters.
"The press release is misleading because it contains statements that are at least potentially deceptive about the availability of the goods," the judges wrote. "The statement conveys the impression of unlimited availability."
The iPhone maker was banned from selling the iPhone 7 and 8 models in Germany in December following a patent dispute with Qualcomm Inc.
At the time, the iPhone maker said that it would no longer stock the iPhone 7 and 8 at its 15 retail outlets in Germany but those models would remain available to customers through carriers and resellers across Germany.