Apple set up a banner in the Parkland Mall in Dalian, China that advertised its upcoming flagship store in the nearby Century City shopping district. According to a M.I.C Gadget report, a security team from the Dalian Department Store took down the sign because it was upset that Apple chose a rival mall for its retail store.

As MacRumors points out, a report in We54 suggests it wasn't a mall rivalry that resulted in the banner being removed, but a public safety violation by Apple. We54 claims the large display encroached on public space and had to be removed.

Apple supposedly has its own security team on site and is working to diffuse the situation. You can watch the security guards remove Apple's banner in the M.I.C. Gadget video below.

[Via Fortune 2.0]