Shape CD Ltd., which manufactures promotional discs for brand marketers, filed a federal patent infringement lawsuit earlier this month against clothing manufacturer Quiksilver Inc. and other unnamed defendants.
In the suit, filed March 9 in Manhattan in U.S. District Court, Shape CD alleged that Quiksilver used hangtags on clothing that infringed on its design for a tag that digitally provides product information to the consumer.
“Our Hangtagz product offers unique opportunities for marketers at retail,” said Shape CD Co-CEO Rod Lowenstein. The company holds US Patent 7,010,876 for the “Apparatus and Method for the Distribution of Consumer Product Information.”
Lowenstein said after Shape CD a few months ago encountered in a store a Quiksilver product displaying a tag similar to what Shape produces the company approached Quiksilver about becoming its supplier but was rejected, prompting the litigation.
“We’re not being litigious for the sake of being litigious,” Lowenstein said. “We felt compelled to protect our brand,”
Quiksilver did not return calls for comment.
Quiksilver designs, produces and distributes clothing, accessories and related products for young-minded people and develops brands that represent a casual lifestyle oriented to board riding. The company’s products are sold throughout the world, primarily in surf shops, skate shops and other specialty stores.
Howard Aronson, an intellectual property lawyer representing Shape CD in the case, said that the plaintiff is aware of 1.5 million Quiksilver garments that used the tag in question. He added that if he is unable to settle the case with the defendant, Shape CD would also sue all the retailers that sell Quiksilver merchandise. During the discovery phase, Quiksilver would be forced to divulge the retailers’ identities, Aronson said.
Financial damages in patent infringement cases are determined by the court, which typically decides on a “reasonable royalty” as allowed for by a statute, he added.
An authorized
HangTagz disc was attached to Wrangler Jeans last September for a promotional three-song CD of country singer George Strait arranged by Universal Music.
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