Recently, our firm won the first instance of an administrative litigation case for invalidation of an invention patent, in which it is ruled that the invention patent should be comp...
Introduction In the chemical field, it is difficult to seek invalidation of a patent claiming to have achieved unexpected technical effect. This case provides a strategy for success...
Genki Forest Again Wins Trademark Infringement Litigation Awarding with an Injunction on the Production
and Sale of the Fake Goods
Genki Forest (Beijing) Food Science and Technology Group co., Ltd. sueing the other four companies for trademark infringement and unfair competition case was ruled recently. The High People’s Court of Shandong Province held that the soda water sold offline by the defendants, Leda Company, Shanshui Company, and Hongxingruan, constituted similarity with the soda water “気”of Genki Forest in the bottle design, typeface of the character “氣”, composing of the text and image, and the overall style. While, Shaanxi Genki Forest company’s intentional use of “Genki Forest” as its trade name was sufficient to cause confusion to and misidentification by consumers, which was an unfair competition act of infringing Beijing Genki Forest’s packing. On this ground, the first instance ruled that the facts were clear and rejected the appeal. (Sep. 15th, CNR)
Anti-unfair competition
CNY 5 Million Damages Awarded! The “red-soled shoes” Recognized as Influential Product Name and Package Decoration by Beijing Intellectual Property Court
Tall, slender heels with red soles are the hallmark of CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN S.A.S.'s “red-soled shoes”.
Recently, the Beijing intellectual property court made the first-instance judgment on the dispute of unfair competition on “red-soled shoes”, recognizing the product name “红底鞋”, the Chinese characters of “red-soled shoes”, .and the red-sloe design used on high heels of Chris Louboutin as “influential product name” and “influential package decoration” respectively and ruling the infringing party to cease infringement and compensate for the economic losses of CNY 5 million and the reasonable costs of CNY 445,000. The seller shall not be liable for the damages but for the reasonable costs of CNY 5,000. (Sep. 9th, Beijing IP)
Copyright infringement & Anti-unfair competition
The Script Murder Studio Ruled to pay over CNY 1 Million Damages for its Unauthorized Adaption on Chinese Fiction Nirvana in Fire
Recently, the Primary People's Court of Yangpu District of Shanghai Municipality made the first instance judgement on the dispute over copyright infringement and unfair competition between Daylight Entertainment and Beijing Three-Zero-One Culture Communication co., LTD., ruling Three-Zero-One to stop infringing the fiction Nirvana in Fire, and compensate Daylight Entertainment for economic losses and other costs of CNY 1.05 million.
The court held that the script used by the defendant for the game Nirvana in Fire- Machiavellian had the same character's name, the same storyline as Nirvana in Fire, and even the same plot that Nirvana in Fire originated, therefore, the script murder studio involved constituted adaptation rights infringement.
In addition, considering the long-term publicity, development and use of the name, Nirvana in Fire had a high reputation in the entertainment industry making it an influential product name. The studio involved largely used "Nirvana in fire" as a mark, which constituted an infringement on the influential product name of others. (Sep. 22nd, IPRCHN)
IP policy related
Global Innovation Index 2022 Released, China Ranks No. 11 Keeping Improving for 10 Consecutive Years
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) recently released the 2022 Global Innovation Index Report.
China ranked 11th, up one place from last year, and has steadily improved for a decade. China rose to the top among 36 middle and high income economies, according to the report.
The report also showed that in 2021, the total value of Chinese brands reached $1.9 trillion, up by 7% year on year, ranking 18th globally. Among them, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China made the top in the global banking industry, and Huawei ranked second in the global technology industry. Venture capital investment reached $94 billion, up by 84% year on year, ranking 16th globally. In 2020, the export value of high-tech products reached $757.7 billion, up by 6% year on year, ranking fourth in the world; High-tech manufacturing accounted for 48.1% of the manufacturing sector, up by 1% comparing with 2018, ranking 14th in the world. Intellectual property revenues reached $8.9 billion, up by 34% from last year. (Sep. 29th, CNIPA)
CNIPA Held Press Conference Themed “Intellectual Property in the Past Decade”
The China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) held regular press conference for October themed on "Intellectual Property in the Past Decade" on Oct. 9th.
Officials indicated that from 2012 to 2021, the CNIPA granted 3.953 million invention patents, with an average annual growth of 13.8%; registered 35.563 million trademarks, with an average annual growth of 25.5%. By September 2022, China had a total of 4.081 million valid invention patents, including 3.154 million domestic patents (excluding Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan), 41.523 million valid trademark registrations, 2,495 products approved for geographical indications, and 6,992 registered geographical indications approved to be used as collective trademarks or certification marks. A total of 59,000 integrated circuit layout design certificates were issued. (Oct.10th, IPRdaily)
