Recently, the case of Bruce Lee’s daughter suing the Chinese fast food brand Zhen Kung Fu has aroused heated discussions. According to the latest development, the Shanghai Second Intermediate People's Court has accepted the trademark case of Bruce Lee Enterprises, LLC (Bruce Lee Co., Ltd.) v. Shanghai Zhen Kung Fu Fast Food Management Co., Ltd., Guangzhou Zhen Kung Fu Catering Management Co., Ltd., and Guangzhou Zhen Kung Fu Fast Food Chain Management Co., Ltd. Infringement case.
Bruce Lee Co., Ltd. requested the court to order Zheng Gong to compensate him for economic losses of 210 million yuan and to compensate him for reasonable rights protection expenses of 88,000 yuan. It is reported that Bruce Lee's daughter Shannon Lee (Chinese name: Li Xiangning) is the legal representative of Bruce Lee Co., Ltd.
On December 26, Zhen Kung Fu said through its official Weibo: "There was a dispute many years ago about whether our trademark is infringing, but there has never been an administrative or judicial conclusion to determine infringement or cancellation of our trademark. After being sued for many years, we are also very confused and are preparing to respond.” According to China News Service, Zhen Kung Fu said, “We have not infringed and will not seek an out-of-court settlement.” Kung Fu brand trademark plan. The claim for 210 million yuan has no factual and legal basis.”
According to available information, Li Xiangning has been on the road to defending her father’s image since 2010, and in 2019. It took a lot of effort to receive the formal indictment.
How difficult is it to inherit and maintain your father’s image?
Xiang Ning Li: Guardian of Bruce Lee's image
Public information shows that Xiang Ning Li was born in 1969 and was only 4 years old when her father Bruce Lee passed away. Her impressions of her father were through photos and movies. Received from the memories with my mother and brother.
Bruce Lee also had a son, Brandon Lee (Chinese name: Li Guohao), who was born in 1965 and was only 8 years old when Bruce Lee died. After Li Guohao became an adult, he inherited his father's legacy and starred in many films. However, during the filming of the movie "The Crow" in 1993, he was accidentally shot and killed when a prop gun fired a real bullet. He was 28 years old.
Like her father and brother, Li Xiangning chose to embark on the path of acting. She studied acting in college and received systematic martial arts training. In 1998, Li Xiangning was invited by Golden Harvest Company to return to Hong Kong to film the action film "Full of Guts". In the same year, Li Xiangning also participated in the Hollywood big-budget movie "Blade Runner 1", playing a supporting role in the film.
In recent years, Li Xiangning has moved behind the scenes and participated in many cultural and film and television promotions related to Bruce Lee. In April this year, the American drama "Warrior" adapted from Bruce Lee's manuscript was officially released. The plot tells the story of a Chinese martial arts genius who goes to San Francisco and fights a bloody battle with gangs in the local Chinatown. According to reports, Li Xiangning also served as the producer of the show.
In addition to inheriting and promoting Bruce Lee's cultural heritage, Shannon Lee also showed a strong side in spreading Bruce Lee's image. Some foreign media said that Shannon Lee is the guardian of Bruce Lee's image. After Quentin Tarantino's "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" was released in July this year, it caused a lot of controversy because of the way the film interpreted Bruce Lee. Li Xiangning denounced Quentin for describing her father as an "arrogant bastard who can only talk too much" and demanded an apology from Quentin during the interview.
However, in an interview with Russian media, Quentin said that the image of Bruce Lee in the film was not fabricated, saying that he was "just a bit arrogant. He has said similar things in life and left similar impressions." ".
Bruce Lee, the national idol who is being fought over
As a national idol, Bruce Lee has also been enthusiastically sought after by businessmen, especially in Shunde, Guangdong, Bruce Lee's hometown.
According to the Trademark Office of the State Intellectual Property Office, there are nearly a hundred trademark application records for the three Chinese characters "Bruce Lee" alone. Among them, the ones with the most applications are from: Foshan Shunde Bruce Lee Paradise Co., Ltd., Foshan Shunde The earliest application records for the Li District Bruce Lee Memorial Hall and Shunde Bruce Lee Cultural Communication Center can be traced back to 2002.
According to information on the official website of the Trademark Office, the "Bruce Lee" trademarks applied by the above three companies have all been judged to be invalid.
According to Nanfang Daily, Shunde Bruce Lee Paradise and Bruce Lee Memorial Hall have never been developed or used after registering dozens of related trademarks. However, in 2009, a "Bruce Lee" legend turned out and won the The revenue of 300 million yuan has made many domestic businesses covet the "Bruce Lee trademark". After many twists and turns, the Bruce Lee Memorial Hall decided to cooperate with Jun'an Mingchi Clothing in 2012 and handed over some of its registered trademarks to Jun'an Mingchi, which launched more than 20 styles of "Bruce Lee" brand clothing. It is reported that Jun'an Mingchi is a well-known local processing company in Shunde.
In other words, Jun'an Mingchi obtained the trademark authorization transferred from the Bruce Lee Memorial Hall, but did not obtain the official authorization from Bruce Lee's descendants. According to information on the official website of the Trademark Office, in March 2015, Junan Mingchi officially received a notice of trademark invalidation.
In fact, in 2010, regarding the Bruce Lee trademark issue, Li Xiangning returned to China from the United States to defend rights. The Trademark Office of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce issued a formal reply in 2010, stating that "the rights to develop and exploit Bruce Lee and his English name 'Bruce Lee' should belong to his heirs."
In addition to defending her rights, Li Xiangning also took the initiative to register multiple "Bruce Lee" trademarks.
According to records on the official website of the Trademark Office, Bruce Lee Co., Ltd., the plaintiff in this lawsuit against Zhen Kung Fu, also applied for 14 "Bruce Lee" trademark registrations from 2012 to 2015, covering snacks, beverages, clothing, and television. , games, publications, teaching and many other aspects.
It has been 15 years since the Zhen Kung Fu trademark was registered. How does Li Xiangning defend her rights?
In 2010, Li Xiangning spoke to the media for the first time about her dissatisfaction with real kung fu and expressed the need to defend her rights, but nothing happened. It was not until recently that Bruce Lee Co., Ltd., of which Li Xiangning serves as the legal representative, formally filed a lawsuit with the Shanghai No. 2 Intermediate People's Court and requested Zhen Kung Fu to compensate him for economic losses of 210 million yuan and reasonable rights protection expenses of 88,000 yuan.
However, Zhen Kung Fu, which has been using the trademark for 15 years, responded strongly, saying, "We have not infringed and will not seek out-of-court settlement. There are no plans to replace the Zhen Kung Fu brand trademark. The claim amount of 210 million yuan does not include any Factual and legal basis”.
Zhen Kung Fu was formerly known as "168 Dessert House", which was founded by Pan Yuhai in Dongguan in 1990. It was later renamed "Double Seeds" steamed food restaurant after his sister and brother-in-law Cai Dabiao and his wife joined. In 2004, in order to open up the front-line market, Zhen Kung Fu entrusted Ye Maozhong Marketing Planning Agency to carry out brand planning, launched a new brand of "Zhen Kung Fu", and matched the corporate icon that resembled Bruce Lee.
Information from the Trademark Office of the State Intellectual Property Office shows that Zhen Kung Fu first began to apply for icons that resemble Bruce Lee in 2004, and they were used in cafes, cafeterias, restaurants and other places, 15 years ago.
Lawyer Qiao Wanli, senior partner of Zhejiang Zeda Law Firm and deputy director of the Intellectual Property Professional Committee of the Hangzhou Lawyers Association, said that the Zhen Kung Fu trademark has been approved for registration for more than five years, and the trademark rights are relatively stable. Li Xiangning passed It is very difficult to litigate the invalidity of Zhen Kung Fu trademark.
Qiao Wanli said that after the application brings about the preliminary examination announcement or registration announcement of the trademark, the prior right holder or interested party discovers during the preliminary examination announcement stage that the trademark can be used in accordance with Articles 32 and 3 of my country’s Trademark Law. Article 13: File a trademark objection; if no discovery is made during the announcement period and the registration has been approved, according to Article 45 of my country’s Trademark Law, within five years from the date of trademark registration, the prior right holder or interested party may request the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board It is very difficult to declare the registered trademark invalid. The relevant trademarks under the name of Zhen Kung Fu have been approved for registration for more than five years.
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