Author丨Feng Liange Intern Li Yijing.
Editor丨Cai Shuyue, Li Yutong.
According to reports, on the morning of the 19th, Thai Royal 50R Group (50R Group) formally submitted a lawsuit to the court, asking the court to sentence China Luckin Coffee to compensate for economic losses of 10 billion baht (about 20 yuan).4.6 billion yuan), the court has filed and accepted the case.
On the 20th, the entry "Thailand Luckin claimed 10 billion baht from China's Luckin Coffee" rushed to the hot search, and the dispute over the trademark of Zhongtai Luckin Coffee once again caused heated discussions.
On the afternoon of December 20, @luckincoffee Luckin Coffee responded to the claim of 10 billion baht: Regarding the claim of 10 billion baht by Thailand's fake Luckin, the situation has yet to be verified.
It is worth mentioningThere is also a Thai sentence in the response copy, which translates into Chinese to roughly mean "I can't read it, but I'm shocked!."”
Thailand Luckin claimed tens of billions
The war over the trademark infringement dispute of Zhongtai Luckin Coffee was ignited as early as two years ago. At that time, some netizens said that they drank "high imitation Luckin" in Thailand, except for the direction of the antlers and Thai, the rest of the visual design was almost identical. Luckin Coffee later issued a statement, saying that the company did not open a store in Thailand, and the Luckin store in Thailand was a counterfeit store.
In 2021, China's Luckin Coffee filed a lawsuit with the Thai Intellectual Property and International Courts, accusing 50R Group of maliciously registering its trademark. In response, the Court of First Instance ruled against the defendant and ordered the defendant to cancel the registration of the trademark and order the defendant to cease using the trademark.
In March this year, the defendant, the Royal Thai 50R Group, appealed to the court because the verdict was unfair. At the end of November, the case was ** again, and the next day, 50R Group won the case.
On the morning of December 19, the Thai Royal 50R Group (50R Group) formally submitted a lawsuit to the court, asking the court to order China Luckin Coffee to compensate 10 billion baht for economic losses, and the court has now accepted the case.
According to reports, the documents submitted to the court by the Royal Thai 50R Group show that it had legally registered the Luckin trademark with the Thai Ministry of Commerce in 2020, and everything was handled in accordance with the rules and procedures of Thai law, and was allowed to use the trademark to operate a coffee shop business that sells beverages such as tea and coffee. As a result, 50R believes that Luckin's actions have damaged its business reputation.
Specifically, 50R's lawsuit contains three claims for financial damages:
1.The defendant has seriously damaged the business reputation of 50R Group. As a well-known enterprise in Thailand, the trademark it holds is well known to the Thai people. According to the plaintiff, the company originally planned to expand to more than 10,000 coffee shops around the world in a short period of time and prepare to list on the Thai ** exchange. The defendant's illegal acts led to the interruption of the plaintiff's plan, causing it to suffer serious financial losses. Therefore, 9,000,000,000 baht is claimed. Detailed evidence and factual information will be presented to the Tribunal at the next interrogation hearing.
2.Before the court made a final judgment on the case, China Luckin Coffee authorized the client to arrogantly and illegally seize the property in the coffee shop of the 50R Group without permission, causing it to suffer serious humiliation and losses. Compensation of 995,000,000 baht is sought.
3.As a result of the illegal accusations of China Luckin, 50R Group had to pay for professional lawyers and legal counsel to defend its case, and claim 5,000,000 baht for the costs incurred.
To a certain extent, the trademark dispute between Zhongtai Luckin Coffee reflects the local protectionism at the level of Thailand's legal system. You Yunting, a senior partner and intellectual property lawyer at Shanghai Dabang Law Firm, believes that this kind of local protectionism deviates from the principle of the rule of law, and only protects the parties based on their location, which is a violation of fairness.
On the afternoon of December 20, Luckin Coffee's official ** related news and responded: "Regarding the issue of being claimed 10 billion baht by Thailand's fake Luckin, the situation has yet to be verified." And attached a Thai sentence that means: "I can't read it, but I'm shocked!".”
Brands going overseas face trademark problems
Coincidentally, Chayan Yuese has also encountered similar overseas trademark squatting incidents. An international student who went to South Korea preemptively registered the trademark of Chayan Yuese in South Korea and opened a bubble tea shop. And because there was no trademark application in South Korea in advance, Chayan Yuese could not prevent the emergence of "piracy" in South Korea. In the announcement, the official reluctantly said: "We have learned that the other party's behavior is legal, and we have no right to interfere." ”
Another "Internet celebrity" in the catering industry, Chef Bao, was not spared. At the beginning of December, some netizens posted on social platforms that a newly opened "Master Bao" pastry shop in London is highly similar to the Chinese brand Chef Bao.
On the 10th of the same month, Chef Bao Pastry issued a statement about the overseas infringing stores, saying that "there have been some stores operating under the Chef Bao brand without authorization in overseas markets". Unlike Luckin and Chayan Yuese, the relevant personnel of Master Bao publicly responded in an interview with **: "We have registered the trademark of Master Bao overseas before. The evidence of the infringement of the copycat version of 'Master Bao' in London, England is very clear. At present, the forensics has been basically completed. Master Bao will take up the law** to protect his own rights and interests in a legal way and protect the interests of consumers. ”
It has become a current trend for Chinese brands to sail overseas, but there are still difficulties in the protection of overseas trademarks.
The 2022 International Trademark Monitoring and Early Warning Report released by the China Trademark Association disclosed the trademark monitoring of 313 member companies in 189 countries and regions around the world. The report showsIn 2022, 7% of member companies suspected of being preemptively registered trademarks overseas. Among the 22 well-known enterprises that have been monitored to have a record of trademark squatting, the average per company is about 1Eight countries and regions were preemptively registered, up from 08 countries and regions.
Intellectual property law is strictly territorial. The so-called territoriality means that intellectual property rights can only arise in accordance with the laws of a country, and can only be valid in the territory where they arise in accordance with the law.
You Yunting suggested that in the era of globalization, enterprises should apply for overseas trademarks and patents as soon as possible. In the case of trademarks specifically, international trademark registrations can be carried out through the Madrid Trademark Procedure. This procedure allows the applicant to extend the protection of the mark in the country of origin to the designated Contracting Party through the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) application to the designated Contracting Parties covered by the Madrid Procedure.
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Editor: Li Yutong, intern: Song Jiayao.
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