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Sotheby wins Chinese trademark case |
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Written by Felix Da Silva (fdasilva@bitnip.com)
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Friday, 15 February 2008 |
 International auction house Sotheby's won a Chinese trademark infringement case against Sichuan 'Su Fu Bi'. This is another sign that China's
judicial system is taking intellectual property matters more seriously on the eve of the Beijing Olympics.
According to the Financial Times, Beijing court ruled against Sichuan 'Su Fu Bi' Auction Company, which uses the same
simplified Chinese characters in its name as the international auction house.
Sotheby's name, both in English and in traditional (not simplified) Chinese characters, has been
registered as trademarks in China.
The court designated Sotheby's name as "well known" and therefore protected in
spite of the fact that its name in simplified Chinese characters had not yet
been approved as a trademark in China.
Cedric Lam, a Hong Kong-based partner for law firm Dorsey & Whitney,
In practical terms it is very important. China is already the busiest trademark registration centre in the world and it
can take more than three years from filing [to get a trademark]. Even some Beijing Olympic partners have not yet registered all their
trademarks, and this shows that [famous brands] can turn to the courts for
protection. Foreign companies could not get a trademark designated as "well known", which
gives additional protection, until China joined the World Trade Organisation in
2001.
Sichuan Su Fu Bi, was ordered to stop using the name,
pay Rmb110,000 ($15,280 US) in damages and to publish an apology
in a local newspaper.
This is a great step forward towards intellectual property protection and enforcement in China. Let's hope that China keeps up the level of enforcement even after the Beijing Olympics.
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