LEGO and SLUBAN bury the hatchet

It is by a press release laconic that information fell: LEGO and SLUBAN (Shantou Century Youyi Toys Limited Corporation), a Chinese construction toy manufacturer established in 2004, is making peace after years of legal warfare.

In fact, for many years, LEGO has continued to sue its competitor for the obvious similarities between the products of the two manufacturers. LEGO has also always sued its most serious competitors for patent infringement and has most of the time been unsuccessful.

To protect its expiring patent, LEGO attempted in 1996 to register a photo of a red brick as a Community trademark.

On September 14, 2010, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that the LEGO toy brick could not be registered as a Community trademark. Trademark law cannot allow a company to extend the life of its patent. It follows from this judgment that trademark law cannot therefore be intended to extend the exclusivity of the technical invention. LEGO then changed its strategy by attacking its competitors on other criteria, including the similarities between the products.

The SLUBAN brand is present in France, notably in the stores of the GiFi brand.

No information on the terms of the agreement was communicated. Below is the content of the press release.

"... Agreement between LEGO and SLUBAN

NIEUWERKERK AAN DEN IJSSEL, October 4 - Since 2008, SLUBAN has successfully marketed its building blocks for children in Europe. Since 2011, the brand has been the subject of legal attacks by LEGO, which considers that SLUBAN products are too similar to its own. After several years of disputes, LEGO and SLUBAN have reached an agreement satisfactory to both parties and which will be valid for the whole world. No details are made public. From the second quarter of 2014, SLUBAN will come back in force with an expansion campaign emphasizing its own character ..."