Apple sued for allegedly selling copy-protected books, report says

Several Chinese authors have sued Apple, alleging copyright violations, a new report claims.

According to Reuters, which cited a report in Chinese financial magazine Caixin, nine authors who are part of the China Written Works Copyright Society (CWWCS) have filed suit in a Beijing court against the iPhone maker for allegedly selling their copyrighted works through its iBooks marketplace. A total of 37 books are included in the lawsuit, according to Reuters, though their titles were not divulged.

The CWWCS has targeted prominent companies in the past. Some of its authors have sued Google over its online Google Books database, as well as Chinese search engine Baidu for a similar service.

Unlike those cases, where the authors nearly immediately decided to sue Google and Baidu, this time around, the CWWCS apparently tried asking Apple to remove the books first, according to the report. However, after "months" of failed attempts, the group has decided to go to court. According to Reuters, the authors are asking for $1.9 million in damages.

Apple did not immediately respond to CNET's request for comment.



Don Reisinger is a technology columnist who has covered everything from HDTVs to computers to Flowbee Haircut Systems. Besides his work with CNET, Don's work has been featured in a variety of other publications including PC World and a host of Ziff-Davis publications.

Don writes product reviews for InformationWeek and is a regular contributor to Processor Magazine.

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