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"The 'Yege' trademark rights protection litigation case has been listed as a typical case of malicious trademark registration. ”
来源:IPRdaily中文网(iprdaily.cn)
The Beijing High People's Court upheld the trademark infringement and unfair competition lawsuit filed by the German company against the liqueur "Yege Hagures", upheld the first-instance judgment, found that "Yege" was a well-known trademark and that the use of the trademark "Yege Hagureis" constituted trademark infringement and unfair competition, and ordered the infringer to pay RMB 1.1 million in compensation.
On December 14, 2023, the Beijing Intellectual Property Court held a briefing on "Typical Cases and Special Adjudication Work on the Regulation of Bad Faith Registration of Trademarks". The "Yege" trademark rights protection lawsuit was listed as a typical case of bad faith registration of regulated trademarks.
Founded in 1878 in Germany, with a history of more than 140 years, the company is a world-renowned manufacturer and distributor of alcoholic beverages, No. 5614224 "Yege", No. 992806 "JÄGERMEISTER", No. G663995 "Jägermeister", No. G795174"
", No. G1287599"
", No. G1291858"
The registrant of the registered trademark. The German company Jägermeister first sold the "Jägermeister" liqueur to China in 2003.
With regard to the production and sales of "Yege Hagurees" liqueur, after full preparation with the team of the "Yege" trademark owner, the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Patent and Trademark Law Firm represented the "Yege" trademark owner Master Zagmiste Europe (also known as "Yege Germany") to file a trademark infringement and unfair competition lawsuit with the Beijing Intellectual Property Court against Santa Laura (Qingdao) Wine Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Santa Laura Company"), Sing Hongsheng and Hefei Portuguese-Garden Trading Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Portuguese-based Company"). On November 18, 2022, the Beijing Intellectual Property Court rendered the (2021) Jing 73 Min Chu No. 468 Civil Judgment, which is as follows:
1. The defendants Santa Laura Company, Sing Hongsheng Company and Portuguese Garden Company shall immediately cease the infringement of the well-known trademark and the exclusive right to use the registered trademark of the plaintiff German Yege Company from the date of the effective date of the judgment;
2. The defendants Santa Rolla Company and Portuguese Garden Company shall immediately cease the acts of unfair competition involved in the case from the date of the effective date of the judgment;
3. Within 30 days of the effective date of the judgment, the defendant Sanrola Company published a statement on its official website, "China Intellectual Property News" and "Qingdao Evening News", and the defendant Sing Hongsheng published a statement on the "Qinhuangdao Evening News" within 30 days of the effective date of the judgment. Publish a statement, in which the defendant Luyuan Company publishes a statement in its Jingdong store (store name: Portuguese Garden Liquor Franchise Store) to eliminate the adverse impact caused by the infringement (the content of the statement shall be reviewed by the Beijing Intellectual Property Court, and if the statement is not published within the time limit, the Beijing Intellectual Property Court will publish the relevant content of the judgment, and the costs shall be borne by the defendants Santa Rolla Company, Sing Hongsheng and Portuguese Garden Company respectively);
4. Within 15 days from the effective date of the judgment, the defendant Santo Laura Company shall compensate the plaintiff Germany Yege Company for economic losses of RMB 10 million, of which the defendant Sing Hongsheng shall be jointly and severally liable for RMB 360,000;
5. Within 15 days from the effective date of the judgment, the defendant Luyuan Company shall compensate the plaintiff Germany Yege Company for economic losses of RMB 100,000;
6. Within 15 days from the effective date of the judgment, the defendants Santa Laura Company, Sing Hongsheng and Portuguese Garden Company shall jointly compensate the plaintiff Germany Yege Company for reasonable expenses of RMB 59,446.
The case acceptance fee shall be borne by the defendants Santa Laura Company, Sing Hongsheng Company and Portuguese Garden Company.
Screenshot of Santa Laura company's official website "Wild Gehagures" liqueur
Screenshot of the Jingdong store of the Portuguese Garden Company's "Wild Gehagures" liqueur
The defendant in this case appealed to the Beijing Higher People's Court against the first-instance judgment. After trial, the Beijing High People's Court rendered the (2023) Jing Min Zhong Zi No. 246 Civil Judgment, rejecting the defendant and upholding the original judgment.
On December 14, 2023, the Beijing Intellectual Property Court held a briefing on "Typical Cases and Special Adjudication Work on Regulating Bad Faith Registration of Trademarks" (https://www.chinacourt.org/chat/chat/2023/12/id/53186.shtml). The "Yege" trademark rights protection lawsuit was listed as a typical case of bad faith registration of regulated trademarks. In the case of the "Yege" trademark rights protection lawsuit, the Beijing Intellectual Property Court pointed out that: The infringer imitates the right holder's prior well-known brand in an "all-round" way, from the trademark to the product packaging, slogans, sales methods, etc., and there is a "mixed sale of real and fake", the infringer's subjective malice in clinging to the goodwill of the right holder is obvious, and the consequences of the infringement are serious, and punitive damages should be applied. The "brand effect" is comprehensive and complex, and it is not only contained in a single trademark, but also can become the carrier of brand goodwill in all aspects of the production and operation of the enterprise. Therefore, unlike infringement of a single trademark, "all-round" brand imitation has a greater impact on brand image and rights. The specific patterns of conduct may include: registering and using trademarks that are similar to the rights holder's trademarks, copying packaging and decoration, mixing and matching "genuine" and "imitation" products, and using misleading slogans. Punitive damages should be applied to such serious infringements of "all-round" imitation of prior well-known brands, which are not only conducive to safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of rights holders and consumers, but also conducive to creating an honest and orderly market competition order.
Nils Langemann, Director of Intellectual Property and Risk Management at Yeg AG, said: "The judgment of the Beijing Intellectual Property Court and the Beijing High Court in favor of our claim is not only a milestone event for our company's intellectual property protection, but also an encouraging signal for brand rights holders who have been plagued by counterfeiting and infringement and insist on protecting their rights. These judgments demonstrate the firm determination of Chinese courts and authorities to protect intellectual property rights.
We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the Chinese courts and authorities for their strong efforts to protect the intellectual property rights that are essential for brand owners, as well as our business partners and consumers for their trust in our brands and for their support in the fight against counterfeiting and infringement. ”
The intellectual property dispute between the trademark "Yege" and the trademark "Yege Hagureis" has attracted wide attention from the wine and beverage industry and consumers. The judgments rendered by the Beijing Intellectual Property Court and the Beijing High People's Court on the trademark infringement and unfair competition case of "Yegehagures" are of great significance for regulating industry behavior, maintaining fair competition market order, protecting intellectual property rights and consumer rights and interests, demonstrating the timely and effective protection of intellectual property rights by China's judicial authorities, and cracking down on the behavior of famous brands, which is a typical example of China's vigorous strengthening of judicial protection of intellectual property rights.
(Original title: "Yege" was recognized as a well-known trademark and received compensation of RMB 1.1 million)
来源:IPRdaily中文网(iprdaily.cn)
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