A BEIJING COURT has awarded Nippon Electric Company Ltd. (NEC) 1.15 million yuan (£84,320, €105,681 or $167,810) compensation from four Chinese companies that it found to have manufactured and flogged PC keyboards that were NEC knock-offs.

The defendant companies included Zhuhai Yuehua Electronics Company, Zhuhai Yuehua Technology Development Company, Shenzhen Jinjijia Electronic Industry Company and Beijing Shiji Yuehua Technology Development Center.

In November 2006, the Zhuhai Department of Industry and Commerce confiscated from the two Zhuhai Yuehua companies more than 40,000 fake NEC keyboards, over 38,000 bogus guarantee cards, 10,000 erzatz product quality certificates, and a steel template of the NEC trademark along with packing materials and documents displaying the NEC logo. NEC then sued all four of the defendant companies seeking compensation for trademark infringement.

Beijing No. 1 Secondary People's Court awarded one million yuan against the four companies as actual damages for NEC's lost profits and 150,000 yuan for attorneys' fees and expenses. NEC had asked for a total of 1.5 million yuan in compensation, presumably including some consequential or punitive damages amounting to approximately one-third of its lost profits. µ

L'Inq
China Tech News