The Paper's reporter Lu Mei correspondent Rui Xuan
Ryan Ge Lao Guan Store Courtesy of the Court
The internet red hot pot shop Shanghai Ge Lao Guan sued the gao imitation shop RuiAn Ge Lao Guan for unauthorized use of the word "Ge Lao Guan", and after the first instance judgment of the Wenzhou Ruian Court, the Rui An Ge Lao Guan stopped the unfair competition behavior against the Shanghai Ge Lao Guan and compensated 150,000 yuan. Elder Rui Ange appealed, and the Wenzhou Intermediate People's Court recently rendered a final judgment upholding the original judgment.
The first store of Shanghai Gelaoguan opened in Shanghai in 2014 and has since opened more than 40 stores in many cities across the country. Ryan Ge Was Founded in October 2019.
In May 2020, Shanghai Ge Laoguan found Ruian Ge Laoguan store on the review website. After on-site inspection, the entrance of the store hung "Ruian Ge Laoguan" signboard, of which the word "Ruian" is smaller, highlighting the word "Ge Laoguan", and the store decoration style and environmental layout are also similar to the Shanghai Gelaoguan store.
The Shanghai Elder Brother filed a lawsuit with the Shui On Court, demanding that the Elder Brother of Shui On stop using the same words as "Brother Elder" in related services and compensate for economic losses.
At the trial, the Shanghai Elder Brother held that he had been operating the Elder Brother official for many years, so that the "Elder Brother Official" gained popularity, and the "Elder Brother Official" thus became a well-known name abbreviation and should be protected by law. Elder Ryan Ge used it without permission, causing public confusion and constituting unfair competition.
Rui'an Ge Lao Guan believes that "Ge Lao Guan" is the meaning of big brother and brother in the Sichuan dialect, and is a folk title commonly used in Sichuan, not original to Shanghai Ge Lao Guan.
The court held that since the opening of the store, the business of Shanghai Brother Laoguan has been hot and the phenomenon of queuing is common, and combined with the revenue of stores in other places and the promotion of major marketing media and public accounts, the court found that Shanghai Brother And Elder Official enjoys the rights and interests of the "Brother Elder Official" and has a certain influence, and supports the Shanghai ElderLy Official to enjoy the rights and interests of the "Brother Elder Official" and protect it according to law.
The court held that the prominent use of the three words "Elder Brother" in many places such as the signboard and taiwan sign in the store was sufficient to cause confusion and misidentification of the goods by the relevant public, and there was an act of attaching to the plaintiff's goodwill. Therefore, the unauthorized use of the name of the other person's influential brand name constitutes unfair competition.
Editor-in-Charge: Xie Chunlei