Danone drops Chinese lawsuit
Trimmed by IPsoon Global Agency
Nov 12, 2007
French food maker Danone has dropped its lawsuit against the China Trademark Office, in a new development in the company¡¯s long-running battle with its Chinese joint venture partner over the Wahaha brand.
In September, Hangzhou Wahaha Foods, a joint venture created by Danone and
Ogilvy and Mathers, a public relations firm representing Danone in China, has told a Chinese newspaper that it has now withdrawn the lawsuit, saying: "During the legal process, we believe the facts around the written reply from the state trademark office have been clarified".
Danone has declined to elaborate further. It has been reported in the Chinese media that, as the initial attempt to transfer the trademark was made in 1996-7, the time limit for legal action has expired.
But sources close to the litigation have told MIP Week that Danone withdrew the lawsuit because it had already obtained what it wanted: an admission by the China Trademark Office that Wahaha did not actually attempt to transfer the Wahaha trade mark to the joint venture company, as it was supposed to do in the original joint venture agreement.
Danone has been locked in a legal battle with its joint venture partner Wahaha since April this year. A case in a
The July/August edition of Managing IP contains an
analysis of the dispute and the lessons that it can teach businesses about protecting their IP in joint ventures.
IPsoon Global Agency comments:
As a famous joint venture, they often have good legal consciousness to protect their rights. If you want know more about intellectual property news, please browse our website www.inipsoon.com.