BMW ad misused image of rocket, court rules
By Wang Qingchu |
December 24, 2011, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
BMW China has been ordered to stop using the image of a Long March rocket in an advertisement and pay 90,000 yuan (US$14,200) in compensation to the manufacturer of the rocket.
Fengtai District People's Court in Beijing heard that BMW used the image of the Long March 2F rocket in the ad to gain a competitive edge, leading to the perception that the carmaker had consent from the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, designer and manufacturer of the rocket, Xinhua news agency reported yesterday.
The ad could also mislead people into thinking that there was cooperation between the academy and the carmaker, which would be unfair competition and impair the interests of the academy.
It's unknown whether BMW China will appeal the ruling. The carmaker will issue a statement regarding the lawsuit in a few days, said Jackie Wang with BMW China's corporate affairs department.
The academy took the German-based carmaker to court in November, accusing it of using the popularity of the Long March rocket to draw the attention of consumers to its products, which the academy said was unfair competition.
Fair use argued
The academy called for the company to cease its intellectual property infringement and compensate it for economic losses of 100,000 yuan.
The academy showed the court an advertisement published in Vista, a Chinese-language magazine. The ad features a BMW car accompanied by images which included a rocket, children, and women playing Chinese musical instruments.
BMW argued the rocket photo was considered public property and that it utilized it properly to show the development of technology.
BMW didn't need to use the image to boost its brand awareness because it already has high recognition, the automaker argued in court.
Further, it said that because the academy is not in the same industry, there could be no unfair competition.
The Long March 2F was designed to launch heavy payloads into orbit, including last month's historic launch of the Shenzhou spacecraft that made a historic docking with the Tiangong-1 space lab.
Fengtai District People's Court in Beijing heard that BMW used the image of the Long March 2F rocket in the ad to gain a competitive edge, leading to the perception that the carmaker had consent from the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, designer and manufacturer of the rocket, Xinhua news agency reported yesterday.
The ad could also mislead people into thinking that there was cooperation between the academy and the carmaker, which would be unfair competition and impair the interests of the academy.
It's unknown whether BMW China will appeal the ruling. The carmaker will issue a statement regarding the lawsuit in a few days, said Jackie Wang with BMW China's corporate affairs department.
The academy took the German-based carmaker to court in November, accusing it of using the popularity of the Long March rocket to draw the attention of consumers to its products, which the academy said was unfair competition.
Fair use argued
The academy called for the company to cease its intellectual property infringement and compensate it for economic losses of 100,000 yuan.
The academy showed the court an advertisement published in Vista, a Chinese-language magazine. The ad features a BMW car accompanied by images which included a rocket, children, and women playing Chinese musical instruments.
BMW argued the rocket photo was considered public property and that it utilized it properly to show the development of technology.
BMW didn't need to use the image to boost its brand awareness because it already has high recognition, the automaker argued in court.
Further, it said that because the academy is not in the same industry, there could be no unfair competition.
The Long March 2F was designed to launch heavy payloads into orbit, including last month's historic launch of the Shenzhou spacecraft that made a historic docking with the Tiangong-1 space lab.
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