There are few places more thrilling for an intellectual property lawyer than a trade show. When companies from across the world come together to sell similar types of products, the IP implications are headache-inducing. Who has the patent in that particular jurisdiction? What constitutes a violation?
Intellectual property disputes in the exhibition world
In 2017, a German patent-owner brought a copyright claim against a company exhibiting a certain type of steel chair at a Cologne trade fair, for which they owned exclusive rights in Germany. The defendant pushed back, saying the chair was not actually for sale. The appeal court agreed that the defendant could exhibit whatever they wanted, provided it wasn’t for sale, but that distributing advertising material with the patented design actually constituted a violation.
If that single anecdote is enough to provoke some degree of confusion, one can imagine how complicated IP claims can become at trade shows. Not for nothing did Baselworld open its “IP Panel”, that has been handling disputes of this nature since 1985. In 2006, Frankfurt introduced its “Messe Frankfurt against Copying” initiative for the same reason.
The copyright capital: Canton Fair
But if there’s one fair that’s famous for intellectual property issues, it’s the Canton Fair.
Today, the Canton Fair is one of the biggest trade shows in the world. It began as a small export-focused event in 1957 when China was beginning to move beyond its years of isolation. The fair grew slowly, attracting international presence. In 1972, 42 intrepid businessmen from the USA became the first American visitors to attend the Guangzhou fair. Since then, as China has risen to become the world’s largest manufacturer, the fair has grown in tandem.
But the growth of the Chinese export market has been unorthodox. In the 90s and 2000s, China was renowned not for drones and robotics but knock-off phones and copycat products. The ‘Anycool’ phone, a play on the Samsung Anycall, for example – or ‘Adibos’ shoes, a brand with a logo bearing striking similarity to Germany’s Adidas.
The Canton Fair was a stage for these IP theft cases. Infringements became so prevalent that organisers had to take action. In 1992, the Ministry of Foreign Economics and Trade reported that more than 200 trademark infringement cases had been handled at the 71st Canton Fair. By 1997, the fair had established a dedicated “Special IP Group” to manage complaints with a dedicated Complaint Station. Despite the crackdown, the problem continued to grow: at the 126th Canton Fair in 2019, the Complaint Station handled 440 IP infringement complaints against 580 companies. By 2023, that number had risen to over 1,500 IP complaints in a single fair.
Sophia Hou – policing the show floor
Today, the Canton Fair’s Complaint Station is experienced at handling these claims. IP holders have to submit documentation like trademark certificates at least two weeks before the fair begins. Once a case of copyright is accepted, officials inspect the suspect’s booth and request the exhibitor produce proof of legitimate IP rights or authorisation. Exhibitors who fail to defend themselves will have the allegedly infringing items covered with seals or removed from display. The process from complaint filing to enforcement action typically takes between four to six working hours.
To get an first-person account of the process, EW spoke to Sophia Hou, managing partner of Guangzhou Office Lusheng Law Firm, who deals with IP infringements at the fair. She gave us an account of the Canton Fair’s relationship with intellectual property theft, as well as some advice for exhibitors whose IP rights have been violated.
“IP infringements in the past were prolific at the Canton Fair,” she explained. “While it remains a globally important fair, it has become much “cleaner” in terms of obvious trademark infringements.
“What remains are often more subtle disputes around designs or patents. The scale of China as a sourcing base means that trade fairs in all sectors are likely to see some exhibitors who step over the line and infringe IP.
“The Canton Fair’s in-house enforcement process means that IP owners can get very fast remedies – getting infringing items removed within a day or two – which is vital, given that the fair only lasts a few days. This kind of embedded enforcement mechanism is best practice in our view, as it offers a low cost, quick remedy for dealing with infringing exhibits on site, but still allowing for legal action later, outside the fair.
Sophia told us that this kind of IP-protection is not found at every trade show.
“Not every fair organiser has this kind of mechanism,” she said. “IP owners should find out in advance what remedies are available. In general, China has good mechanisms for carrying out quick enforcement action if you have your formalities prepared in advance. However, you also need to check whether the enforcement authorities can freely enter the exhibition site to carry out enforcement. Also, the exhibitor at a fair may be an export company and not the end manufacturer, so enforcement at the fair may not be dealing with the source.”
Employing undercover investigators
Sophia even recommends using “undercover investigators” to find out whether companies are selling infringing items without necessarily displaying them directly. “Apart from enforcement at the fair itself,” she said, “most IP owners use fairs as a source of intelligence and evidence gathering. Just because an exhibitor is not displaying an infringing item does not mean that they do not offer it to interested customers. We recommend using undercover investigators who are well versed in your products and have the right business identity to approach likely targets, find out what they are really offering, and get to the supply source.”
While the days of knockoff “Adibos” shoes are in China’s past, the sheer volume of the country’s export market means that IP infringements are still a major issue. The Canton Fair’s four-to-six-hour turnaround from complaint to enforcement sets a strong standard, however, and shows that the world’s manufacturing powerhouse won’t shy away from legal disputes involving Chinese exhibitors.
Source: www.exhibitionworld.co.uk
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