China Prosecutes Counterfeit Disney Merchandise For the First Time
For the first time in the history of Chinese law, an individual has been found guilty of violating Disney’s Mickey Mouse figurative trademark.
An online celebrity with the surname Zhu had been selling counterfeit toys and plushes on the short-video platform Douyin.
Sold During Livestreams
According to prosecutors, Zhu and his wife sold fake Disney dolls and other accessories at low prices during livestream sales in 2021 and 2022 and earned over 3 million yuan ($436,300).
The group was arrested in August and over 800 counterfeit products were seized by police.
As a part of his guilty plea, Zhu admitted to creating fake English certificates for the dolls and avoiding calling the Disney merchandise by name during the live broadcast, in order to avoid punishment.
Six Arrests Made
Prosecutors say that the toys with fake Disney logos can be identified as infringing products, but that those without logos were hard to confirm.
Zhu has been jailed for one year and 10 months and was fined 800,000 yuan. At least five other people were sentenced to around one year of probation and fined, the court announced.
More Prosecutions Incoming
The manufacturers of the toys were also caught, and an additional investigation is ongoing.
In recent years, the Chinese government has begun to crack down on the infringement of intellectual property. The latest arrests, however, mark the first time that an individual was arrested for violating Disney’s copyright claims.
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