The Guangdong High Court recently upheld a lower court verdict against Midea Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Group, ruling that the appliance maker must stop selling pirated products and levied a fine of 2 million yuan ($314,300).
The case began three years ago when Gree Electric Appliances Inc. found that four of Midea's air-conditioner models copied its patented technologies.
Gree brought a lawsuit in Zhuhai Intermediate Court in late 2008, and the first trial was heard in April this year.
As part of its defense strategy, Media filed an application with SIPO to void Gree's patent during the legal proceedings, but also failed in that effort.
The lawsuit Gree v Midea not only caused widespread concern in the industry, but also causes people to think about "intellectual property". There are comments that the final judgment will not only eradicate the relevant infringing products of Midea out of the market but also damage its corporate image and reputation seriously. The encouragement of innovation will necessitate the protection of innovative things from arbitrarily plagiary. Now, the legal environment for intellectual property rights is still too loose and the plagiarism between enterprises is too serious. Midea’s loss of the case rings the alarm bell for us.
