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14 March 2018Patents

P&G resolves clash over whitening strip patents

Consumer goods company Procter & Gamble (P&G) has resolved a patent infringement clash involving tooth whitening strips with an oral goods manufacturer.

One year ago, P&G sued oral goods manufacturer Ranir at the US District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Western Division, accusing the company of infringing two patents related to P&G’s Crest Whitestrips.

The patents (5,891,453 and 5,894,017) cover a tooth whitening strip on which a tooth whitening or oral care substance containing an adhesive is applied to a relatively thin and flexible strip.

In 2012, Ranir introduced private label toothpaste whitening strips but “voluntarily” agreed to stop selling the products and removed them from the market after P&G informed Ranir of its IP rights and accused the company of infringing them.

Ranir manufactures products for companies such as Walmart and Kroger. The allegedly infringing products include Equate Deluxe Whitening Strips, which was sold by Walmart. But, according to P&G, “with full knowledge” that the patents expired in June 2017, Ranir manufactured the products before that date.

Yesterday, March 13, P&G announced that the dispute over the litigated patents and a portfolio of newer patents relating to tooth whitening technology and strips had been resolved.

As part of the settlement, Ranir acquired rights to the patents under confidential commercial terms.

“This resolution is yet another instance of P&G’s successful enforcement of the IP that protects its trusted Crest Whitestrips brand. The innovations behind Crest Whitestrips have propelled the brand as the leader in the whitening strips category, and P&G will continue to protect and enforce its IP,” said the release.

Colgate-Palmolive has also taken on Ranir— it is attempting to stop the company from selling toothbrushes featuring the mark ‘Smile 360’.

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