A man was found selling counterfeit POP MART products on the Xianyu platform, with the plaintiff seeking over 60,000 yuan in compensation; the court has now issued its ruling. Recently, the Siming District Court publicized a copyright infringement case involving POP MART's intellectual property, where a Xianyu seller was adjudged to have infringed copyrights by selling counterfeit Dimoo figurines and was ordered to pay compensation. POP MART is a renowned trend culture and entertainment brand specializing in trendy toy products, having launched numerous popular collections adored by fans, such as the LABUBU series and the Molly series, which enjoy widespread consumer acclaim. Among these, the "DimooWorld series," featuring a young boy with a signature "cloud-like" hairstyle, is a particular favorite among countless trendy toy enthusiasts. M Company (a pseudonym), as the copyright holder of the artistic works for the "DimooWorld series," discovered that a citizen, Xiao Lin (a pseudonym), had opened a store on Xianyu specifically selling figurines that closely resembled Dimoo, with the store's page displaying images and videos of multiple works from the series. M Company contended that Xiao Lin had not obtained authorization from the company and that his sales activities infringed upon the company's copyrights for the artistic works, subsequently filing a lawsuit against Xiao Lin demanding compensation for economic losses exceeding 60,000 yuan. During the trial, Xiao Lin argued that he had a legitimate primary job and that selling figurines on the Xianyu platform was merely a side hustle aimed at alleviating some financial pressure; he also claimed that personnel associated with M Company had expressed intent to purchase, thereby inducing him to stockpile over 100 dolls, and thus he should not be liable for the full compensation amount. The court, after deliberation, determined that Xiao Lin, without permission from the rights holder and without paying appropriate remuneration, had sold imitation dolls resembling the artistic works of POP MART's "DimooWorld series" in his Xianyu store, an act which constituted an infringement of the plaintiff's distribution rights and for which he should bear civil liability by ceasing the infringement and compensating for losses. Considering the high renown of the series, the entrapment behavior by M Company during the evidence collection process, and the fact that Xiao Lin was only a small, sporadic seller on Xianyu, the court ultimately applied statutory damages, ruling in the first instance that Xiao Lin must compensate the plaintiff for economic losses and reasonable costs incurred in protecting their rights, totaling 9,000 yuan.
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