Flying Man Wins Lawsuit; "Jordan" Trademark Ruled Infringing and Ordered to be Revoked

　　The highly-publicized trademark infringement dispute between Michael Jeffrey Jordan (hereinafter referred to as Jordan), the renowned American basketball star, and Qiaodan Sports Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Qiaodan Sports) has reached a milestone. Yesterday morning, the Supreme People's Court publicly announced its verdict on this series of cases: Qiaodan Sports' disputed trademarks violate the Trademark Law's provision that "applications for trademark registration shall not infringe upon the existing prior rights of others" and should be revoked.

　　Supreme Court Ruling:

　　Jordan possesses prior naming rights to the Chinese character "Qiaodan"

　　The Supreme People's Court's verdict on the series of administrative disputes concerning the "Qiaodan" trademark is as follows: Regarding the three cases involving the "Qiaodan" trademark, because the registration of the disputed trademark infringed upon the applicant's prior naming rights to "Qiaodan," violating the Trademark Law's provision that "applications for trademark registration shall not infringe upon the existing prior rights of others," it should be revoked. Therefore, the ruling revokes the appealed decision of the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board and the first and second instance judgments, ordering the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board to make a new decision on the disputed trademark. Regarding the four cases involving the pinyin "QIAODAN" and the three cases involving the pinyin "qiaodan" combined with related graphic trademarks, totaling seven cases, because the applicant does not possess naming rights to the pinyin "QIAODAN" and "qiaodan," the registration of the disputed trademark did not infringe upon the applicant's prior naming rights. The disputed trademark also does not fall under the circumstances stipulated in the Trademark Law as "harmful to socialist morals or having other adverse effects" or "obtained registration through deceptive means or other improper means." Therefore, the ruling upholds the second instance judgment and rejects the applicant's retrial application.

　　"Air Jordan" Statement:

　　Pleased with Supreme Court Ruling; Protecting Name is Most Important

　　In response, Jordan expressed his relief: "I am very pleased to see that in the judgment of the Qiaodan Sports trademark dispute case, the Supreme People's Court recognized my right to protect my own name. Chinese consumers have the right to know that Qiaodan Sports and its products have no connection with me. Nothing is more important than protecting one's own name, and today's judgment highlights the importance of this principle."

　　Jordan stated, "From my early days playing on the NBA court to my return visit to China last autumn, millions of Chinese fans and consumers have affectionately called me 'Jordan.' Today's judgment will let everyone know that Qiaodan Sports and its products have no connection with me. I respect Chinese law and look forward to the Shanghai court's judgment on the ongoing name rights infringement case."

　　Qiaodan Sports Response:

　　Differentiation in Advertising to Prevent Confusion

　　Following the verdict, Qiaodan Sports quickly issued a public statement.

　　Qiaodan Sports stated that, first, these ten cases are only a small portion of the 68 "Qiaodan" trademark disputes, and the Supreme Court had already made final rulings on most of the cases last year, upholding the registration of 50 of Qiaodan Sports' trademarks. Qiaodan's litigation agent, Ma Dongxiao, stated, "The four most important trademarks currently used by Qiaodan Sports in its main business are among those 50 cases. For Qiaodan Sports, today's verdict will not affect its future operations."

　　At the same time, Qiaodan Sports stated in its statement, "Before Jordan raised objections and filed lawsuits against the company's registered trademarks, in order to avoid causing confusion to the public, our company has paid attention to differentiation in product advertising and market promotion activities, and the 'national brand Qiaodan' has already gained the trust and support of tens of millions of users."

　　Four Years of Disputes, Jordan's Continuous Unsuccessful Accusations, Even His Son's Names Were Registered

　　In 2012, Jordan announced that he would apply to the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board to revoke the disputed trademarks on the grounds that Qiaodan Sports used his name without authorization.

　　At that time, in addition to the "Qiaodan" graphic and Chinese character trademarks and "QIAODAN," a total of four trademarks registered by Qiaodan Sports, Qiaodan Sports also owned 127 registered trademarks and 25 trademarks pending registration. Among the trademarks that had been registered, the trademarks of Jordan's two sons, "Jeffrey Jordan," "Marcus Jordan," "JIEFULIQIAODAN," "MAKUSIQIAODAN," and their variations, were all included, exactly matching the Chinese and pinyin spellings of Jordan's two sons' names. At the same time, other names easily associated with Jordan, such as "Little Jordan," "Dan Qiao," and "QIAODAN23," were also registered.

　　"When I learned that other companies were using my Chinese name, my jersey number 23, and even attempting to use my children's names for commercial activities without my permission, I was very disappointed." Jordan said. Ultimately, the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board decided to uphold the disputed trademarks.

　　Afterward, Jordan filed an administrative lawsuit with the Beijing First Intermediate People's Court, which was rejected. Last year, Jordan applied to the Supreme People's Court for retrial. This April, the Supreme Court held a public hearing, and both "Jordans" presented their statements and evidence.

　　News Extension

　　Multinational Corporations and International Celebrities Worry About Trademark Rights

　　In China, trademark rights are granted to whoever registers first. In the US and UK, trademark rights are granted to whoever uses the mark first, regardless of registration.

　　Many famous multinational corporations, like Michael Jordan, have also worried about Chinese trademarks. New Balance, a shoe brand founded in Boston in 1906, entered the Chinese market in the 1990s, but its use of "Niubaren" was preemptively registered by its Chinese agent; in 2003, New Balance re-entered the Chinese market using "Xinbailun," but the "Xinbailun" trademark was applied for in 2004 and registered in 2008. New Balance was found to have infringed on the trademark and was ordered to pay 98 million yuan in compensation. The case is still under appeal.

　　Michael Jordan is considered lucky, as Qiaodan Sports' products are still related to sports. Some international celebrities, however, have faced a worse fate. Cristiano Ronaldo (C Ronaldo) is a world-renowned football star, but in Guangdong, China, someone successfully obtained the trademark rights for "C Ronaldo" in class 11 ("gas stoves, water heaters, flush toilets, disinfection cabinets...etc.") in 2010.