BMW seeks damages for trademark infringement
BMW of North America has sued Xtreme, an online company distributing car parts, for trademark infringement and unfair competition.
The case was filed on Monday, July 3, at the US District Court for the Central District of California.
According to the complaint, Xtreme had tried to take a “free ride” on BMW’s reputation.
BMW alleged that Xtreme had used Amazon to sell counterfeit goods which looked like BMW products.
Xtreme also allegedly imported counterfeit goods into the US, and encouraged other parties to do the same.
BMW said: “Defendants violated and continue to violate plaintiffs’ exclusive rights to the BMW trademarks.”
The company added: “Neither plaintiff nor any authorised agents have consented to defendants’ use of BMW trademarks in the manner complained of herein.”
According to BMW, Xtreme had sold the infringing products in bad faith with the intention to cause confusion and deceive customers.
The infringing products were primarily car parts and accessories. In one investigation carried out by BMW, it purchased car door projector lights from Xtreme.
In the complaint, BMW has asked the court for damages of $2 million per counterfeit trademark per type of goods sold, as well as costs for bringing the case to court.
Did you enjoy reading this story? Sign up to our free daily newsletters and get stories like this sent straight to your inbox
Today’s top stories
Nokia enters patent agreement with Xiaomi
Fatboy tries to shut down man selling inflatable loungers
Indian Patent Office updates guidelines on computer-related inventions
