Adidas and Reebok target online counterfeiters in TM suit
German multinational sports clothing company Adidas and athletic apparel business Reebok have filed a lawsuit against a number of online counterfeiters.
Adidas and Reebok filed the suit at the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida on Monday, October 31, accusing a number of defendants of selling counterfeit clothes bearing their trademarks online.
The companies also claimed false designation of origin and common law unfair competition.
According to the suit, “the recent explosion of counterfeiting over the internet has created an environment which requires companies such as plaintiffs to file a large number of lawsuits” to protect their brands.
The suit added that the counterfeiters “operate in foreign jurisdictions with lax trademark enforcement systems” such as China.
Additionally, the counterfeiters sold products which infringed Adidas and Reebok’s trademarks on e-commerce websites Amazon and eBay.
Adidas owns trademarks for ‘Adidas’ and the Adidas logo, which were registered at the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in May 1970 and November 1973.
Reebok owns trademarks for the term ‘Reebok’ and the Reebok logo, registered at the USPTO in April 1986 and August 1994.
The marks cover goods including shorts, sports bags, gloves and athletic shoes.
Adidas and Reebok claimed in the suit that the fake products will “cause confusion” to customers buying the products as they will believe the goods are associated with the companies.
The sports apparel companies added that the counterfeiters are “employing substantially similar, paid advertising and marketing strategies based, in large measure, upon an illegal use of counterfeits and infringements of plaintiffs’ marks”.
Adidas and Reebok are asking for statutory damages of $2 million per counterfeited mark used and product sold, costs, attorneys’ fees and pre-judgment interest.
A spokesperson for Amazon told WIPR that it doesn't comment on litigation.
A spokesperson for eBay said: "Counterfeits are illegal and not welcome on any of eBay’s sites. eBay was one of the first companies to adopt an online process to report intellectual property right infringements, and now works with thousands of rights owners to protect IP. These range from major software companies to luxury goods manufacturers."
