Xiaomi's legal department announced a significant victory on 25/2 in its lawsuit against Chinese automotive media company AutoReport. The court ruled in favor of Xiaomi, finding that AutoReport had infringed upon the company's reputation and brand image by disseminating false and defamatory content.

The court determined that AutoReport used its accounts across various online platforms to spread unverified content. This content contained false and insulting information, which violated Xiaomi's reputation rights and damaged the company's brand standing.

Xiaomi CEO, Lei Jun, and the YU7 model. Photo: Xiaomi

The court ordered AutoReport to remove the infringing content, issue a public apology, and compensate Xiaomi Corporation. The compensation amounted to 5 million yuan (725,000 USD). Following the ruling, Xiaomi reaffirmed its commitment to protecting its legal rights.

Public records indicate that AutoReport (autoreport.cn) is affiliated with Yiche.com. Yiche.com, with its international version bitauto.com, is a major Chinese website dedicated to reporting on the automotive industry's developments.

William Li, founder of the automaker Nio, established Yiche.com in 2000. Lei Jun of Xiaomi was one of Nio's initial investors.

AutoReport had published several original articles discussing Xiaomi Auto. However, the specific articles that led to this lawsuit have not been disclosed.

According to CarNewsChina, automakers frequently file lawsuits against media outlets for compensation. Most prior cases targeted independent content creators, making this lawsuit against a major media organization a notable precedent. The requested compensation also set a new record.

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