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11 October 2019TrademarksSaman Javed

BMW targets counterfeit car part makers in trademark suit

BMW has filed a trademark infringement and dilution suit against alleged counterfeiters over the sale of fake car parts.

In a complaint filed yesterday, October 10, at the US District Court for the Central District of California, the German carmaker claimed that California-based EDA International is importing counterfeit car parts from China and distributing them across the US.

BMW said these parts bear a number of its trademarks, including its name, logo and the names of its X and M car series. The car parts being sold include oil sensors and shadow lights.

It said the distribution of the counterfeit parts harms its business as it already has a network of authorised car part dealers in place in the US..

According to the complaint, the fake parts are manufactured in China and imported to a warehouse in California, before being sold online through eBay.com.

BMW said it had purchased a selection of car parts from the alleged counterfeiter’s eBay store on numerous dates starting in May 2018.

Following the purchases, the carmaker sent EDA a number of cease-and-desist letters, with the most recent letter sent on September 24, 2019. According to the filing, the letters were ignored.

BMW said EDA was purposefully benefiting from the unauthorised use of its trademarks, and asked the court for a permanent injunction and monetary damages.

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