Settlement agreement reached in Ultraman trademark infringement case

December 5, 2007
The Taizhou Municipal People’s Intermediate Court of Zhejiang Province heard a case publicly over the Ultraman copyright and trademark infringement recently. The plaintiff and defendant reached a settlement agreement at court.

The plaintiff, TSUBURAYA PRODUCTIONS Co.,Ltd. Of Japan, claimed that it sued a Taizhou-based Chinese shoe maker over the copyright and trademark right infringement of its brand ULTRAMAN and 奥特曼 (Ultraman in Chinese) in March this year, and the two sides signed an agreement after negotiations.

However, the plaintiff found out four months later that some children’s shoes made by the defendant carrying the Ultraman brand were still sold in a small goods market in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. The plaintiff brought the defendant to court again, asking the shoe maker to stop producing and selling the shoes and pay 220,000 yuan (29,769 U.S. dollars) in compensation.

The defendant said that it stopped the production and sales of the shoes after signing the agreement with the plaintiff. The shoes bearing the logo of Ultraman found in the market were made in November and December, 2006, before the agreement was signed. Therefore, the defendant appealed to the court to turn down the plaintiff’s request.

Presided by the court, the two parties reached an agreement as follows: the defendant shall make compensation of 40,000 yuan (5,412 U.S. dollars) for the plaintiff’s economic losses, and the plaintiff shall allow the defendant to continue selling the remaining part of the finished children shoes bearing the trademark of ULTRMAN, 奥特曼 or its logo in one year since this agreement takes effect.

　

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