On December 14th, during the press conference on the anti-monopoly and anti-unfair competition work (hereinafter referred to as "the double anti") in Chongqing, the Municipal Market Supervision Administration reported on 7 major typical cases of "the double anti" in Chongqing.
An individual registered a Baidu domain name, used it to establish a website offering search services, violated Baidu's trademark rights, engaged in unfair competition, and was sentenced to compensate for economic losses and publish a public apology.
On February 19, 2019, Chen Wei registered the domain "baidu.mex" and established the "Simple Search" website to provide search services, which infringed upon the exclusive trademark rights held by Baidu Online Corporation and Baidu Netcom Corporation, specifically the No. 5916520 "baidu" and No. 1579950 "Baidu" trademarks, and constituted unfair competition. The Fourth Intermediate People's Court of Chongqing (Civil Case No. 04 Minchu 12 of 2020) ruled that Chen Wei must compensate Baidu Online Corporation and Baidu Netcom Corporation for economic losses of 800,000 yuan and publish an apology notice in the "Legal Daily."
Chen Wei appealed the first-instance judgment, but the Second Instance Judgment of the Chongqing Higher People's Court (2020)渝民终2241号 denied the appeal.
In fact, during the Internet IP era, "smart" domain squatters have set their sights on "creative" imitations, snapping up domain names, and PS videos have become a new method for businesses to "ride the wave" of hot trends.
For instance, on social circles, it's trendy to share short videos with the Hongya洞 backdrop featuring popular internet celebrities, then attach their company or brand name for advertising purposes.
Well-known residential complexes in the main urban area of Chongqing, such as "Huangguan Free City" and "Tianjiao Junyi," had their domain names registered by a Chongqing company, which were later deemed as malicious registrations by the court. The company was ordered to cancel the registrations within a specified timeframe.
In the Internet IP era, squatters have shifted from mere registration to imitation, i.e., imitating creativity, holding only single rights like trademarks, making it difficult for rights holders to enforce their rights.
Before launching a product, the company not only needs to protect its trademark rights but also safeguard its appearance patents, copyrights, and domain names, establishing a comprehensive intellectual property protection network.
Not only that, when it comes to trademark protection, it is recommended to not only cover the current scope of business, but also consider the protection of closely related industry sectors.
"Intellectual property protection is not a static process; it is dynamic and requires timely reinforcement and improvement as the industry evolves," the official said.
