Toymaker Lego wins court case against Chinese copycats

 

Children look at Lego boxes at a Lego store in Beijing, China January 13, 2018. REUTERS/Jason Lee/File Photo

 

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Lego has won another case against imitators in China where copies of its colorful plastic toy bricks and figures have been a recurrent problem, the Danish toymaker said on Monday.

 

In a landmark case last year Lego for the first time succeeded in a copyright competition case in China, where it seeks a bigger slice of a $31 billion toys and games market.

 

"We believe these decisions are well-founded in the facts and the law, and clearly demonstrate the continued efforts of Chinese authorities to protect intellectual property," Lego Chief Executive Niels B. Christiansen said in a statement.

 

The Guangzhou Yuexiu District Court ruled that four companies had "infringed multiple copyrights of the LEGO Group and conducted acts of unfair competition by producing and distributing LEPIN building sets", Lego said.

 

The court ordered that the companies immediately ceased "producing, selling, exhibiting or in any way promoting the infringing products," it said.

 

Furthermore, Lego will receive around 4.5 million Chinese yuan ($649,735) in damages.

 

Last year, the Beijing Higher Court passed a ruling that recognized the Lego logo and name in Chinese as 'well-known' trademarks in China, putting the toymaker in a better position to act against infringement of its trademarks.

 

China is important to Lego, which has seen slow or declining growth in its mature Western European and U.S. markets although China still accounts for less than 10 percent of group sales.

 

Lego, an abbreviation of the Danish "leg godt" meaning "play well", plans to open two flagship stores in Shanghai and Beijing and continue its partnership with Chinese internet giant Tencent <0700.HK>.

 

It is also working with local education departments, state schools and private education providers in China to encourage children to play with Lego as a way to boost their motor skills, creativity and attention spans.

 

Competitors in China include Barbie maker Mattel Inc <MAT.O> and Hasbro <HAS.O>, the firm behind My Little Pony.

 

(Reporting by Stine Jacobsen; editing by Jason Neely)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-11-06

 

"Competitors in China include Barbie maker Mattel Inc <MAT.O> and Hasbro <HAS.O>, the firm behind My Little Pony."

 

Plastic, plastic and more.......plastic.

 

The children of the world need more plastic.

 

 

Edited November 6, 20187 yr by Enoon

' Furthermore, Lego will receive around 4.5 million Chinese yuan ($649,735) in damages.'

 

That's about the average price of a medium sized lego set in Thailand.

When will the Chinese company start manufacturing in Thailand?

4 hours ago, car720 said:

I never could make anything with it anyway.

I always prefered Meccano.

You are showing your age.

2 minutes ago, GreasyFingers said:

You are showing your age.

I had my first Lego set for Christmas in 1960.

9 minutes ago, faraday said:

I had my first Lego set for Christmas in 1960.

I had my first Chinese Lego set for Christmas in 1989

I thought that Lego trademark was over....

The copies available in Thailand are cheaper  but they don't stick together as well as the real thing and they break more easily. 

9 hours ago, GreasyFingers said:

You are showing your age.

We were poor only had stickle bricks ????

Perhaps if Lego wasn't so massively over priced, then the competitors wouldn't be able to sell fakes. How much can it cost to make a Lego brick, (given that they've been around for over 50 years)?

 

I not really understand that. I thought that LEGO's patents had expired many years ago already (~2000 ?)

I remember LEGO loosing his several fights in Justice in Europe, trying the trademark way when the patents expired. 

 

BBC: Lego loses EU trademark case over its red bricks