[双语时讯]匡威就山寨帆布鞋泛滥起诉沃尔玛等86scot(2014/10/20 10:26:04) 点击:
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171.* * * 隶属耐克公司旗下的匡威,近日起诉沃尔玛、FILA和其他31家竞争对手,指控其山寨匡威经典的Chuck Taylor All Star运动鞋款式。
Converse says it is fed up with rival shoe companies selling what the Nike-owned company calls clear copycats of its iconic Chuck Taylor sneakers.
The shoe company said Tuesday that it has filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against 31 different rival shoemakers that Converse says “are mass-producing, distributing or selling sneakers that knock off the look of Converse’s iconic Chuck Taylor.” The lawsuit, which was filed in federal court in New York, names Skechers USA SKX 1.09% , Wal-Mart WMT 0.54% , FILA, Ed Hardy, K-Mart and Ralph Lauren RL 0.13% as defendants, among others.
Converse also filed a separate complaint with the International Trade Commission.
The shoes in question – also known as Converse All Stars, Chuck Taylor All Stars or, simply, Chucks – have been manufactured by Converse since 1917, the company said in a press release announcing the lawsuit. Converse is suing over alleged infringement of multiple trademarks for the shoes, including the rubber cover on top of the shoe’s toe and the “diamond pattern” on their bottom soles.
Chuck Taylors, which are made of canvas, are among the most recognizable shoes around. They harken back to the days before high-tech footwear and hundred dollar sneakers. The high top versions are perhaps the best known, but they come in low-tops versions as well. Converse is not claiming any infringement of the shoe’s star logo in the lawsuits.
“Our decision to bring these lawsuits is grounded in the basic principle of fairness, our well-established right and responsibility to protect Converse’s intellectual property, and our commitment to prevent consumer confusion in the marketplace,” Converse CEO Jim Calhoun said in a statement. “For generations, the Chuck Taylor, universally known as the ‘Chuck’, has captured the hearts and minds of millions of consumers, selling over a billion pairs globally during the past century. We welcome fair competition, but we do not believe companies have a right to copy the Chuck’s trademarked look.”
Converse added that cases of what it deems “knockoff Chucks” have really picked up since 2008, with the company claiming that it has served more than 180 cease and desist letters related to its Chucks trademarks in the past six years. The company says the lawsuits filed Tuesday “are a necessary step toward bringing a stop to this infringing activity.”
A Skechers spokeswoman said the company does not comment on pending lawsuits.
Nike paid $305 million to acquire Converse in 2003.
耐克(Nike)旗下的匡威(Converse)表示,对于竞争对手明显山寨其经典款运动鞋的行为,他们已经忍无可忍。
匡威本周二称,公司已经对31家竞争对手提起商标侵权诉讼,这些竞争对手“存在批量生产、经销或销售山寨版的匡威Chuck Taylor经典款运动鞋的行为。”匡威已经向纽约联邦法院提交诉讼,被告包括斯凯奇美国公司(Skechers USA)、沃尔玛(Wal-Mart)、运动品牌FILA、埃德?哈迪(Ed Hardy)、廉价超市公司K-Mart和拉尔夫?劳伦(Ralph Lauren)等。
此外,匡威还对国际贸易委员会(International Trade Commission)单独提出了投诉。
在宣布起诉的新闻发布会上,匡威表示,公司从1917年开始生产本案涉及的运动鞋,该系列也被称为匡威All Stars、Chuck Taylor All Stars或Chucks。匡威指控多家竞争对手侵犯了该系列运动鞋的多种商标权,包括鞋头上方的橡胶保护层和鞋底的菱形图案。
Chuck Taylors采用帆布制成,是全球知名度最高的运动鞋之一。早在目前各种高科技鞋类和动辄数百美元的天价运动鞋诞生之前,Chuck Taylors帆布鞋便已面世。其中最著名的是高帮款,同时市面上也有低帮款。匡威并未就鞋上的星形标识提出侵权指控。
匡威CEO吉姆?卡尔洪在声明中表示:“我们之所以决定起诉,是本着公正的原则,基于我们负有公认的保护匡威知识产权的权力和责任,以及我们承诺要避免给消费者造成困惑。数十年来,Chuck Taylor,或常被称为‘Chuck’的运动鞋,获得了数以百万计消费者的青睐,其上个世纪在全球的销量超过十亿双。我们欢迎公平竞争,但我们认为,没有一家公司有权剽窃已被注册的Chuck鞋外观。”
匡威补充道,事实上,“山寨Chuck”的情况在2008年便已经出现,在过去六年间,他们已经发出了超过180封与Chuck商标有关的禁止通知函。公司表示,周二提起的诉讼“是制止这种侵权行为的必要措施。”
斯凯奇发言人称,公司对该诉讼不发表任何意见。
2003年,耐克公司以3.05亿美元的价格收购了匡威。