On June 26th, the legal department of Byd Company Limited (BYD) issued an announcement, disclosing a series of successful online defamation lawsuits. The company publicized court rulings against several self-media accounts for maliciously fabricating rumors and slandering the brand, using legal means to deliver a heavy blow against the unhealthy practice of "black PR" in the automotive industry and to safeguard the company's legitimate rights and interests as well as its brand reputation.
Subsequently, Li Yunfei, General Manager of BYD Group's Brand and Public Relations Department, reposted the legal department's statement, adding, "We will absolutely not tolerate black PR and malicious media! We will pursue them relentlessly and show no leniency! We welcome more leads, with a maximum reward of 5 million yuan, and this offer is valid long-term!"
Recent Legal Successes
The recently announced successful cases are not isolated incidents. Reviewing several of BYD's victorious legal judgments in recent years: blogger Yao * Qiang (Douyin account "Da Qin Jun Shan Tuan") fabricated false information related to the Fang Cheng Bao brand, constituting commercial defamation, and was ordered to pay 2.01 million yuan in compensation; accounts "Long Ge Jiang Dian Che" and "Man Ge Dian Xin Neng Yuan," which long disseminated false negative information about the brand, were ordered to pay 2 million yuan; "Wang Wukong Shuo Che," which disparaged Fang Cheng Bao models and infringed upon the brand's reputation rights, was ordered to pay 313,800 yuan; "Long Zhu - Ji Che," which long distorted facts and persistently slandered BYD, was ordered to pay 2.0187 million yuan.
Li Yunfei had previously stated clearly at a public event, "Some media or self-media accounts maliciously pretend to be ignorant while knowing the truth, using false and misleading reports and information to target and slander BYD over the long term—for example, deliberately smearing the brand on at least five out of seven workdays a week. Such behavior seriously harms our brand and product reputation. We cannot accept it and will absolutely not tolerate it."
Industry-Wide Efforts
Currently, malicious slander and false rumor-mongering targeting automakers are frequent occurrences online. Many automakers, including BYD, are actively taking measures to defend their brand rights. In 2021, BYD took the lead in announcing rewards ranging from 50,000 to 1 million yuan to combat malicious "black PR," later increasing the reward for reporting such activities to between 50,000 and 5 million yuan, with the offer remaining valid long-term.
Analyst Perspective
Industry analysts point out that China's new energy vehicle industry is currently at a critical juncture of transitioning from scale expansion to high-quality development. A strong brand reputation and a clear, healthy online public opinion environment are vital cornerstones for the industry's steady and long-term progress. BYD's sustained and forceful crackdown on malicious slander, false rumors, and other infringements will effectively pressure the industry's public discourse to return to a more objective and rational track, shrink the space for malicious marketing and traffic-chasing practices, and further reduce malicious harm to corporate brands and products. This helps solidify the reputation foundation and ensure the healthy, sustainable development of the entire new energy vehicle industry.
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