Bridgestone wins trademark lawsuit against Chinese firms

A Chinese court has ruled that a tyre maker’s use of the Besttone name and a logo similar to that of the Bridgestone tyre brand constitutes trademark infringement. As a result, production and sales of the Besttone brand must now stop and Chinese firm Shenzhen Momentum Star Tyre Co., Ltd. and its affiliate Hangzhou Hangyou Rubber Products Co., Ltd. must pay Bridgestone damages.

Momentum Star Tyre and Hangyou Rubber Products manufactured and sold tyres featuring a ‘Besttone’ logo similar to the registered trademark ‘Bridgestone’ logo for a number of years. In October 2010, Bridgestone filed a lawsuit against the companies in the Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court, claiming that these activities constituted trademark infringement. After Bridgestone’s claim was upheld in that court, the companies filed an appeal in the Guangdong Higher People’s Court. In December 2013, Bridgestone’s claim again was upheld and the original court decision was confirmed.

Bridgestone views the activities of firms such as Momentum Star Tyre and Hangyou Rubber Products as attempts “to sell goods under names confusingly similar to Bridgestone trademarks.” The Japanese company aggressively protects its intellectual property and in recent years has fought, and won, several trademark infringement lawsuits.