PDF《Why》

C ustomers patronizing the Silk Street Market may still be struck by its imposing ban- ner Safeguard IPR , they have no idea the market is right in the mid- dle of a series of trademark in- fringement disputes.

Silk Street Market is sued again On February 7, Beijing No.2 Intermediate People爷s Court accept- ed an infringement case concerning

56 trademarks filed by five foreign luxury goods manufacturers includ- ing Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Burberry, Gucci and Prada. Joining the market at the defense table are Beijing Xin Ya Sheng Hong Real Estate Devel- opment Company and some

10 shops in the market. The five de- signer brands seek

28 million yuan in damages. The five plaintiffs based their lawsuit on the notarized counterfeit goods respectively bought in the market from

2008 to 2010. The

10 shops were specifically accused of infringing their trademarks on the ground of distributing counterfeit goods in the market. Both sides give their story The five right holders assert, as the manager of the market, the Silk Street Market Company has the right and duty to oversee the busi- ness activities within the premises, which it apparently failed to oblige on top of facilitating the infringe- ment activities of the shops. The landlord, Beijing Xin Ya Sheng Hong Company is accused of con- doning the sale of counterfeit goods. Both of them shall assume indirect liability for their intentional act. The dispute between five right holders asserts and Silk Street Mar- ket has been existing since 2005. For the

56 suits, each plaintiff seek 500,000 yuan in damages for each suit , said Luo Zhenghong, the a- gent of above five manufactures. For the detail of the case, however, she refused to disclose citing she was not authorized. Since the operation of the new Silk Street Market in 2005, it has been proactively sweeping away trademark infringement and taking measures to safeguard the interests of brand owner by establishing IPR protection fund, providing free-of-charge International Con- sumption Ticket for brand owners, and trying to filing a '

1 + 5'

IPR protection cooperation mode to brand owners like the above

5 manufactures, so in no sense it pro- vides convenience for trademark in- fringement , said Zhang Yongping, the president of Silk Street Market. Prior to the lawsuit, the five manufactures sent several warning letters to the market through their attorneys and informed on the exis- tence of trademark infringement ac- tivities between

2008 and 2010. The market then launched surprise raids on the shops in question and found nothing as in the warning letter. The market then responded and re- quested substantial evidences from the plaintiffs, who never replied, al- so according to Zhang Yongping. Age-old disputes Actually, the Silk Street Market is no stranger in such case. Since 2005, the market has made several trips to the defense stand. In September 2005, the five foreign luxury-brand manufacturers Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Burberry, Gucci and Prada brought Silk Street Market Company to the court. It was the first time that the market was accused of infringement since its operation in 1985. In April 2006, Beijing High Court rendered its final decision and order Silk Street Market and several shops in the market to indemnify 100,000 in damages. From April to August 2008, the above

5 manufacturers filed a series of

24 suits against the market and several shops for distributing goods counterfeiting their brands, and requested the court to order the two defendants to assume joint lia- bility. On December 2, 2008, under the auspices of Beijing No.2 Peo- ple爷s Court, the five manufactures concluded a reconciliation agreement with the Silk Street Market, includ- ing such terms like urging Silk Street Market Company to perform its management and supervision re- sponsibilities. Establishing long -term IPR pro鄄tection mechanism As this case shows us, we could see that Silk Street Market is an influential market in China and aboard, and intensify IPR protection is of great significance to safeguard its fame and image. On the other hand, it also suggests a need for building a long-term IPR protection mechanism , said Li Shunde, the di- rector of Law and IP Institute of China Academy of Sciences. On the one hand, the Silk Street Market has been making great efforts to protect IPRs for years, including establishing IPR protection fund, giving international consumption ticket, shutting down suspected stalls for selling counter- feits. On the other hand, the prob- lem of infringement did exist, which can not be solved by launching IP enforcement campaign once or twice, it need a long-term and un- remitting efforts. From