Apple Sues Japan’s Sotec

Apple Computer Inc. is suing Japanese PC distributor Sotec Co., alleging that Sotec is copying the look of Apple’s best-selling iMac. The suit, filed in a Tokyo court this week, seeks to block sales in Japan of Sotec’s eOne, which has a blue-and-white translucent case similar to that of an iMac. The eOne, which Sotec developed in conjunction with two South Korean manufacturers, retails for $267 less there than the iMac and has been a hit with Japanese consumers since it went on sale there in July. The move is the latest in a series of legal steps Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple is pursuing to assert rights to iMac’s distinctive features. Apple filed a similar suit in U.S. District Court in San Jose last week against EMachines Inc., a joint venture of Sotec’s two South Korean partners, TriGem Computer Inc. and Korean Data Systems, which makes eOne computers. Sotec, an unlisted Yokohama-based distributor of PCs, helped design the eOne, which was manufactured in South Korea by EMachines. A fourth partner, Japan’s Kyoden Co., contributed to circuit board development. “This action is not fair,” Sotec spokesman Toshiya Nakao said in response to Apple’s latest legal volley. “We developed the eOne using our own technology.” Apple shares rose $1 to close at $61.38 on Nasdaq.