OtterBox Earns Another Victory Against Counterfeiters
FORT COLLINS, Colo.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–OtterBox®, maker of premium protective cases for mobile technology, has won another battle in the ongoing war against counterfeiters. A U.S. District Court judge recently issued a permanent injunction against a New York-based company and ordered it to pay OtterBox $2 million related to the sale of counterfeit cases.
The court found that S & P Trading Inc. violated provisions of the Lanham Act when it purchased and then sold no less than 146,025 counterfeit cases, infringing on federally registered trademarks for which OtterBox owns all rights. This is the latest judgment in a series of actions OtterBox has taken to protect its brand.
Counterfeit consumer product goods continue to be a drain on the global economy. Last year, the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) seized counterfeit goods totaling $1.26 billion in retail value.* Like so many other premium consumer brands, OtterBox aggressively fights against intellectual property theft.
“OtterBox was built on bringing our customers innovative, first-to-market products,” said OtterBox CEO Brian Thomas. “A lot of design, engineering and testing goes into each of our custom protective cases, which is why we take a hard line with companies creating and selling fake cases, as well as those infringing on our patents and trademarks. Counterfeit products damage our reputation for delivering premium quality products because many consumers aren’t aware that they purchased a fake OtterBox. If a deal seems to be too good to be true, it probably is.”
OtterBox currently has more than 110 trademark registrations worldwide with several pending. Additionally, the company holds more than 190 patents in the U.S., placing it among the top innovators in the wireless communications space just between Apple Inc. and BlackBerry. In 2012, OtterBox, in collaboration with CBP, confiscated more than 118,000 counterfeit items and was awarded judgments and settlements totaling nearly $11 million.