Chinese firms fined for copying BMW logo

Chinese copycats have lost a court battle with BMW in a dispute over plagiarism of the German company’s name and roundel by a clothing company.

Shanghai Daily reported that the Shanghai Intellectual Property Court found that two companies infringed BMW’s registered trademarks and capitalised on its reputation. The company has been ordered to pay BMW around £350,000 in compensation.

The copycat company, founded in 2008 as Deguo Baoma Group which translates to ‘German BMW Group’, authorised fashion brand Chuangjia to make use of a logo closely resembling the BMW roundel, albeit with an N in place of the W.

The plagiarised logo was used on numerous clothing products, including shoes and handbags, and was tweaked to match even more closely to BMW's logo over the span of its use.

It's not the first time BMW's roundel has been targeted by Chinese copycats. Carmaker BYD has used a logo featuring the same colours and a similar design. The legal action resolved in the Shanghai court does not involve BYD, however.

Jaguar Land Rover is currently embroiled in a similar court battle with Chinese car maker Landwind, after the Chinese brand released the X7, a £14,000 SUV that bears a close resemblance to the Range Rover Evoque.