On April 20th, according to CCTV News, the Supreme People's Court disclosed the trial of the "Wu Su" vs. "Bird Su" trademark infringement and unfair competition case.
The court ruled that "Bird Su" constituted trademark infringement and unfair competition, ordering it to cease infringement, compensate for losses and reasonable rights protection expenses totaling 2.08 million RMB, and eliminate the impact. Bird Su Company must stop using the "Bird Su" name. However, "Bird Su" appealed the decision. The second instance ruled to dismiss the appeal and uphold the original verdict.
It is understood that in 1986, Xinjiang Wusu Beer Company began producing "Wusu" brand beer. In 2006, it was registered as a trademark. Through long-term continuous use and promotion, the brand has had a significant influence in the domestic beer industry. Since 2016, the company has consistently used the packaging design of "Red Can Wusu Beer 500ml".
The defendant, Niaosu Beer Company, used "Niaosu" as its business name and applied to register the "Niaosu" trademark through a company in Tianjin. They then produced and sold "Niaosu" brand beer, which closely resembled the "Red Can Wusu Beer 500ml".
After trial, the court found that the infringing "Niaosu" beer label was highly similar to the plaintiff's registered trademark, which could easily confuse or mislead consumers, thus constituting trademark infringement.
The defendant company in Tianjin argued that they used the "Niaosu" beer in accordance with their registration of trademark No. 36942919. However, this trademark had been declared invalid by the National Intellectual Property Administration because it was too similar to the plaintiff's trademark, rendering the defendant's rights illegitimate.
Comparing the packaging of the infringing "Niaosu" beer with the plaintiff's "Red Can Wusu Beer", although there were some differences in detail, both primarily used red as the main packaging color. The way the trademark was used, the product name, product shape, label position, net content, and other text information and layout were basically the same, making them highly similar overall.
The plaintiff's "Red Can Wusu Beer" packaging had been extensively promoted and used for a long time, establishing a high market influence and popularity. Despite being competitors in the same industry, the defendants continued to use infringing packaging despite being aware of the situation, which objectively could lead to confusion or misrepresentation among the relevant public. Therefore, the defendants were found to have engaged in unfair competition.
