Judgment of 2 million yuan! "Tart Lime" v. "Da Lime" trademark infringement and unfair competition judgment

In recent years, all kinds of tea products have been loved and sought after by many young people, and joining to open tea brand stores has become the choice of many investors. However, similar signs, the same name sometimes make people silly and unclear，street“Tart lime”与“lemon”One of them.

这是两个品牌吗？

还是属于同一家公司呢？

基本案情

Guangzhou Weimanduo Catering Enterprise Management Co., LTD. (hereinafter referred to as Weimanduo Company) registered under the name“” “” “” “” “”Multiple trademarks. As of May 2018, Weimando has opened more than 50 "Tart Lime" hand tart lemon tea drink stores in Guangzhou, and its use has“”The packaging and decoration of tea products with patterns have been used and promoted for a long time and have gained a certain popularity.

The trademarks registered or authorized to be used under the name of Guangzhou Shangyi Brand Operation Co., LTD. (hereinafter referred to as Shangyi Company) are“” “”，But the company in its model store, official website promotion, and authorized to Guangzhou Derry Catering Co., LTD. (hereinafter referred to as Derry Company) in the store signs, drink packaging is used“” “”Logo. Shangyi has authorized more than 100 franchised stores across the country.

In 2020, Imitado Company sued Shangyi Company and Deray Company to the court, requiring Shangyi Company and Deray Company to immediately stop the infringement“”Graphic registered trademark、“”The exclusive right to use the registered trademark and unfair competition behavior, and require Shangyi company to compensate for economic losses of 2 million yuan, Drey company to compensate for economic losses of 100,000 yuan, and bear reasonable costs for rights protection.

Immitol believes

Shangyi Company, Drey Company in the opening of tea shops and tea product packaging used“” “”Infringement logo and pattern, infringement of its registration in Class 43 tea house, cafe“” “” “” “”The "Tart Lime" tea beverage product packaging and decoration, which is a registered trademark and has a certain influence on Weimanmulti Company, constitutes unfair competition.

Shangyi argues

Its brand identity is“”，There are registered trademarks or copyright rights, there are legitimate intellectual property rights, does not infringe on the trademark rights of others, its use“”Fine art works with Imitado Company“”Trademarks do not constitute approximation；“DANING”Logo, multi company with taste“TANNING”Trademarks are not similar, will not lead to consumer confusion and misidentification, does not constitute trademark infringement.

The court held that

After hearing that the above accused infringement mark“”“”The form of use can play a role in identifying the source of goods or services, constituting trademark use. After comparison, the pattern and English letters used in the accused infringement logo in this case are all the registered trademarks claimed by ImmandoComposition approximation.

In combination with the distinctiveness and popularity of the trademark claimed by Imato, Shangyi Company and Dre Company used the above-mentioned forms of infringing marks.It is easy to cause the relevant public to misidentify the source of the service, or think that there is a specific connection with the service of the registered trademark of Imato company, which constitutes trademark infringement;The use of the accused infringing packaging and decoration on the tea drink products constitutes unfair competition by using similar packaging and decoration of "Tart Lime" tea drink products which have a certain influence on Weimanduo.

Although Shangyi company is licensed for use in class 43 teahouses“”Trademark, but in fact did not regulate the use of the above registered trademark, and the logo used after the change infringed the exclusive right of the trademark involved in the case of Imitado company, so the court did not support the defense of Shangyi Company and Deray company that it did not constitute infringement.

In view of the fact that there is no sufficient evidence to prove the actual loss suffered by Imanduo Company due to the infringement and the specific amount of benefits gained by Shangyi Company and Drey Company due to the infringement, the court considered the popularity and use of Imanduo Company's trademark in the whole case according to the application of Imanduo Company; Shangyi Company and Dre Company constitute the acts of trademark infringement and unfair competition at the same time; Shangyi Company has developed at least 102 franchisees in Guangdong alone, and the scale of infringement is large; The company paid reasonable expenses for investigating and stopping the infringement, including notary fees, lawyer service fees and other expenses; The Nansha Court comprehensively determined that Shangyi Company compensated Weimanduo Company for economic losses and reasonable expenses totaling 2 million yuan, and Drei company compensated Weimanduo Company for economic losses and reasonable expenses totaling 30,000 yuan.

Judicial decision

Guangzhou Nansha District People's Court of first instance judgment, Shangyi company, Deray company to stop the infringement of Weimanduo company registered trademark exclusive right and unfair competition; Shangyi Company compensates Weimanduo Company for economic losses and reasonable expenses totaling 2 million yuan, and Drei Company compensates Weimanduo Company for economic losses and reasonable expenses totaling 30,000 yuan. Shangyi company refused to accept and appealed, and the Guangzhou Intellectual Property Court upheld the original judgment.

The judge said the law

The judge pointed out that as the market competition becomes increasingly fierce, the idea of some businesses to take shortcuts and name brands has led to the emergence of many copycat products. The judge pointed out that as the market competition becomes increasingly fierce, the idea of some businesses to take shortcuts and name brands has led to the emergence of many copycat products.

Related companies and investorsWhen investing in the franchise should be carefully selected, pay attention to identification, before joining can require the licensor to provide trademark registration certificate, authorization certificate and other necessary materials or log in the trademark Office website to check and verify; And carefully check whether the brand identity, decoration design, etc. provided by the licensor are consistent with its registered trademark; After joining, it is also necessary to standardize the use of the authorized trademark logo, which cannot exceed the scope of the approved use of the registered trademark, and do not use the trademark by changing the distinctive features or splitting, combining and other ways to avoid disputes.

Branding businessIn the process of operation, we should also pay attention to the use of trademark law, anti-unfair competition law and other comprehensive legal means to build their own intellectual property defense system and safeguard their legitimate rights and interests. (Source: Nansha District People's Court of Guangzhou)

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Judgment of 2 million yuan! "Tart Lime" v. "Da Lime" trademark infringement and unfair competition judgment