Foreign media TheVerge reported that in a statement to TheVerge, a spokesman for the US Customs and Border Protection defended the agency's detention of 2,000 OnePlusBuds at Kennedy Airport on August 3 1. Last night, CBP announced this action and described these OnePlusBuds as "fake Apple AirPods", which caused controversy.
It seems that it is the fault of the border inspectors. They don't know why they didn't realize that they intercepted a genuine product, and they were even ridiculed because of the similarity between their headphones and AirPods.
But CBP's statement seems to rule out that this is a mistake. What remains unanswered is why OnePlusBuds attract so much scrutiny when the market is full of imitations of AirPods-they have been sold in the United States for several weeks. When you walk into Best Buy, Wal-Mart, or Amazon, they can be seen everywhere.
"CBP import experts have determined after checking related products that these headphones seem to infringe Apple's configuration trademark. Apple has configuration trademarks on its branded headphones and registered these trademarks in CBP, "the spokesman said. Configuration trademarks cover the general appearance of products, if you want to know. "Based on this judgment, CBP officials at Kennedy Airport have seized the goods according to 19USC 1526(e)."
The CBP spokesperson also tried to solve the general reaction of many people to this incident: Can't we just judge that OnePlusBuds are genuine (instead of "fake" pretending to be AirPods) by looking at the packaging box and brand? "CBP's seizure of the headphones involved has nothing to do with the image or language on the box. Companies don't have to put the word' Apple' or design on their products to infringe these trademarks. "
According to a CBP spokesperson, Yijia (or the manufacturer of imported OnePlusBuds) "will have many opportunities to provide evidence through the adjudication process to prove that their products do not infringe the relevant record trademarks". Foreign media said that they had contacted Yijia earlier and refused to comment on the seizure. After seeing CBP's statement, the company declined to comment again.
In addition, Apple itself has not taken any legal action against One Plus, One Plus and other companies including B&; Many American retailers, including HPhoto, still sell this headset. Consumers can still buy normally, and it is not clear whether CBP plans to confiscate future goods.