Luxury brand Chanel has taken action against nearly 90 online counterfeiters by filing a trademark infringement lawsuit.
Filed at the US District Court for the Southern District of California, on Tuesday, December 20, the claim accused the sellers of “promoting, selling, offering for sale, and distributing goods bearing counterfeits and confusingly similar imitations of Chanel’s trademarks”
Chanel claimed the defendants reside and/or operate in foreign jurisdictions with “lax trademark enforcement systems”.
It added: “Like many other famous trademark owners in the luxury goods market, Chanel suffers ongoing daily and sustained violations of its trademark rights at the hands of counterfeiters and infringers.”
The defendants have sold counterfeit bags, tops, cases for telephones, and protective covers for portable electronic devices, which are of a “quality substantially and materially different than that of Chanel’s genuine goods”, claimed the suit.
According to the brand, the defendants have infringed for the “twin purposes” of “duping and confusing” consumers and “earning substantial profits”.
“The natural and intended byproduct of defendants’ actions is the erosion and destruction of the goodwill associated with the Chanel name and associated trademarks and the destruction of the legitimate market sector in which it operates,” it said.
Chanel is seeking preliminary and permanent injunctive relief, an order requiring the online marketplaces to disable the sellers’ IDs, permanent removal of listings and an account of all profits and damages.
Chanel, trademark, trademark infringement, online counterfeits, counterfeiting
