Counterfeiting Nintendo, the Wholesaler from Taiwan Encountered a Claim for Sky-High Amount of Compensation.

The Investigation Station in Tainan County caught the wholesaler of toys and gifts, Jhang Jian-Tai (張建泰) yesterday, who was suspected of importing from China the counterfeit Nintendo video games, and perfume, leather belts, and calculators of well-known brands, such as, Armani, and then selling them to stands in the night market. The market prices of those seized counterfeits amount to about NT$5,000,000. Nintendo authorized its attorney to claim for civil compensation in the sky-high amount of NT$1,100,000,000,000 against Jhang for his suspected infringement on Nintendo’s copyright and trademark right.

This case is now under investigation in the northern Taiwan by the investigation station for the violation of the Copyright Law and the Trademark Law. The prosecutor and investigation bureau found that there were other wholesalers who used the same method to import counterfeits from China and sell them in Taiwan. The investigation station stressed that due to Taiwan’s drastic raid on counterfeits in recent years the high cost of labor in Taiwan, most counterfeits are not manufactured in Taiwan, but instead ordered from China and then imported to Taiwan. Under such circumstance, YiWu City of Zhejiang Province becomes the famous distribution center of counterfeits of well-known brands. (2003.11)

CYJ/CCS