Chinese authorities shut two fake Apple stores selling iPhones and iPads

Chinese officials have ordered two fake Apple stores in Kunming to close down for lacking the necessary business licences, after widespread media coverage of the outlets last week.

Reuters said that the move came after officials inspected around 300 shops and acted against those lacking the correct paperwork, rather than over concerns of copyright theft or piracy raised by Apple.

V3 contacted Apple for its reaction but had received no reply at the time of publication.

The story came to light last week when an American citizen living in China wrote on her BirdAbroad blog about several fake stores she had found in the country.

Apple has genuine stores in Beijing and Shanghai, as well as 13 authorised resellers in Kunming.

Apple's lawyers in China may well be working to get the remaining stores closed down too, although the firm's impressive financial results last week suggest that the odd counterfeit store isn't going to concern Cupertino too much.

Nevertheless, China is frequently criticised for its lax attitude to piracy and copyright infringement. The UK Intellectual Property Office even sent staff to the region recently to work with local enforcement officers to protect UK interests.

Picture courtesy of BirdAbroad.