We are thrilled to announce a landmark trademark litigation victory for our client, a subsidiary of Fosun Group, which distributes the Swedish-imported Vivo ventilators in the Chinese market.

As a highly specialized product in the niche medical device industry, our client’s Vivo ventilator brand enjoys far less public recognition among the general public compared to the renowned Vivo smartphone brand, one of China’s leading mobile phone brands alongside iPhone, Huawei and OPPO.

The Vivo smartphone brand initiated a trademark infringement lawsuit against our client, claiming USD 7 million in compensation and demanding a complete ban on the sales of our client’s Vivo ventilators. It also adopted entrapment-based evidence collection tactics and obtained jurisdiction with certain local protectionist tendencies.

In fact, our client has been importing and selling Vivo ventilators in China since 2005, while the Vivo smartphone brand was not founded until 2009. We firmly asserted and proved the valid prior use right defense throughout the legal proceedings.

Our client achieved a partial favorable judgment in the first-instance trial. Subsequently, we filed an appeal with the Guangdong Higher People’s Court, which ultimately rendered a final judgment rejecting all claims filed by the Vivo smartphone brand.

This case is undoubtedly a milestone for our client and our legal team alike. Had the court upheld the plaintiff’s claims of sales suspension and USD 7 million compensation, it would have dealt a devastating and irreversible commercial blow to our client’s business operations. We are extremely pleased to have effectively protected our client’s legitimate business rights and sustained its long-term development in the professional medical device sector, and this victory also sets a significant precedent for the prior use defense in cross-industry trademark disputes in China.