Both patents in copycat suit canceled

Legal effect of revocation not yet known, Li Fusheng reports.

Two design patents involved in a lawsuit Jaguar Land Rover filed against Chinese automaker Jiangling for allegedly copying the design of its popular SUV have been canceled in China, which has caused many jaws to drop and may discourage actions to protect intellectual property.

Jiangling's Land Wind unveiled its X7 SUV in November 2014 at the annual Guangzhou auto show and has since been the target of criticism for the vehicle's striking resemblance to JLR's Range Rover Evoque, although it only costs less than one-third of the latter's price.

It is difficult for most people to tell one from the other if their logos are concealed - both SUVs have a similar shape, with the roof and windows tapering from front to back, and near identical tail lights and character lines on the side paneling.

The slight differences can be virtually eliminated by adding Range Rover grilles, logos and Land Rover badges, which are widely available. Reports say such kits at shopping website Taobao cost around 128 yuan ($19.43).

Both automakers have been granted patents for their designs in China, with the one to JLR authorized in 2012, a year and a half earlier than the Jiangling patent.

While there is no information about the latest progress of the suit, China's top intellectual property agency has canceled the patents involved in the legal proceedings.

A notice on the website of the State Intellectual Property Office shows that JLR submitted an appeal in July 2014 to revoke the Jiangling patent, and Jiangling asked for JLR's patent to be revoked in February 2015, and both patents were canceled on June 3.

The reasons are that Jiangling's design of the X7 is not significantly different from JLR's Evoque but Evoque's design had been made public before its patent application was made in November 2011.

Yale Zhang, managing director of Shanghai-based Automotive Foresight, said he was surprised to learn of the cancellations.

"If both are invalid, why were the patents given in the beginning?"

Despite a pending ruling from the court, the message from the intellectual property office is now simple and clear: Evoque's design is not patented in China, so Land Wind can go ahead selling its cars without infringing on its rival's rights.

JLR declined to comment on the issue.

Copying common

JLR is not the only automaker whose designs have been copied in China. Hanteng, a new auto brand, has a badge which has a red inverted trapezoidal in a silver circle, reminding people of Italian automaker Fiat's logo.

Zoyte's two models, the T600 and Z500, echo the designs of the Volkswagen Tiguan and Honda Accord, and JAC's Refine A6 looks like the Audi A6.

International brands seldom take legal action, however. Zhang Zhiyong, an independent auto analyst in Beijing, said legal action is meaningless commercially as the different marques target different customer groups, and media coverage could make the copycats better known.

It can also be a long and exhausting process, as in the case of Japanese automaker Honda Motor, who filed a lawsuit in 2004 against Shuanghuan, claiming that its S-RV copied the design of Honda's best-selling CR-V.

The case lasted 12 years before Honda finally lost the battle, with the verdict saying the two designs are not similar. In a separate suit, Honda was ordered to pay 16 million yuan in compensation to Shuanghuan as it argued that the negative publicity surrounding the CR-V lawsuit resulted in the poor sales performance of its model S-RV.

Zhang said: "Appropriate imitation is a step that many automakers, both Chinese and international, take during their development, but a serious player should come up with their own designs instead of cashing in by copying successful models."

Profit-driven copycats are becoming objects of ridicule among Chinese consumers, especially the middle-class, with many on social media calling the acts of automakers like Shuanghuan shameful.

A Beijing-based editor who prefers not to be named said that automakers including Land Wind and Zoyte are too focused on money to ignore that they are in fact cultivating fans for international brands. "People who now drive a Land Wind X7 will definitely buy an Evoque when they can afford it," he said.

Contact the writer at lifusheng@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 06/20/2016 page19)