Apple asked Amazon to remove iPad from its Chinese retail site

Amazon has yanked the iPad from its Chinese Web site following a grievance by Apple that the retail giant is not authorized to sell the tablet in China.A search of Amazon.cn turned up cases and other accessories for Apple's iPad but not the tablet itself.The move was initially thought by some to be related to Apple's feud with Proview Technology, a company that claims it owns the rights to the iPad brand name in China. Earlier this week Chinese officials removed iPads from a third-party reseller following Proview's complaints that Apple refuses to honor the trademark.Proview had even been threatening to seek a ban of the import and export of the iPad in China. The company quickly reversed that position after Chinese customs authorities said such a ban would be difficult to implement because "many Chinese consumers love Apple products," Proview Chief Executive Yang Long-san told Reuters.But citing "people with knowledge of the matter," The Wall Street Journal reported today that Apple asked Amazon to remove the iPad 2 from its online storefronts in China because those sites weren't authorized to sell it--not because of the Proview trademark dispute. Apple and Amazon have reportedly been working together over the past few weeks to remove the sales listings for the popular tablet.

Apple applies for 'smart bezel' patent for iPads

Apple has applied for a patent that would turn the bezel around an iPad screen into a smart area capable of adding functionality to the slate.Related postsPatents suggest stylus; Mode-based interface customizationKodak patent complaints target Apple, RIMCNET News Daily Podcast: Tech industry opens wallets for HaitiAccording to Patently Apple, which earlier reported on the patent application, the technology includes so-called "force sensors" that are sitting at the corners of the black bezel around a tablet display. Along the bezel, Apple would also have sensors around the bezel that would identify both pressure and location and perform an action.The filing, which CNET also reported about here, is an interesting one. Although Apple's iPad had somewhat large bezels in the past, the company has moved away from that, trying to make the side bezels on its iPad Mini and iPad Air quite small. The images including in the filing show a thicker black bezel. It's not clear whether Apple's technology would bring back the thicker bezel or if it would find its use in other ways on a smaller bezel.It should be noted, however, that Apple, like many other large companies, often applies for patents that never find their way into products. It's possible that this functionality could fall into that category.?