If there is one thing that we have not realized yet in life, it’s that no idea is original. Every theory and idea we come up with has been thought of multiple times before. What makes the final idea reality is that one person who takes that idea and does something with it, rather than sitting around pondering life. Taking this “no original idea” theory and implementing it in this next situation may or may not work out so good. A chinese smartphone maker called, Digione, is claiming that Apple’s iPhone 6 may violate a phone design patent. The patent that we are speaking of is the design of Digiones smartphone dubbed the 100+. When compared to the iPhone 6 the two phones look identical. Digione submitted their patent design to China’s State Intellectual Property Office in January and got approval in July.
When it comes to smartphones that look alike, there is always the original design and then the knock off. You would think that in this scenario that Digione would be the company with the knock off phone. Well think again because companies that create knock off phones usually never have the patent designs to their products. In Digione’s case, they have the patent design and even went a step further by posting on the Chinese social network Weibo, the letter they sent to Apple notifying them about the issue. In the letter Digione states, “a communication with goodwill would contribute to solving potential legal disputes.” This letter was sent back in September and Apple has remained silent about the ordeal.
What makes everything more surprising is the fact that Apples marketing of the iPhone 6 and design closely match Digione’s. The only difference between the two is the price and software of Digione’s device. Venturing around in the Android ecosystem Digione’s smartphone has a 5.5inch display and an eight-core MediaTek processor. You could simply say that Digione’s smartphone is a clone of Apple’s iPhone 6, but this company has the patents to prove they held the design first. Could this dispute turn into a big war like the current Apple Vs Samsung, or will this blow over as we move over into the next year?
