OtterBox awarded $2 million in counterfeiting case

FORT COLLINS – A federal judge has issued a permanent injunction against S & P Trading Inc. and ordered the New York counterfeiter to pay OtterBox $2 million, Fort Collins’ OtterBox said Tuesday.

U.S. District Judge Raymond J. Dearie issued the order against College Point, N.Y.,-based S & P on April 29, according to an order made in the Eastern District of New York.

S & P infringed on OtterBox’ trademarks when it sold more than 146,000 counterfeit OtterBox cases, raking in nearly $2.9 million, according to a court filing signed by S & P’s president, Pearl Chen. The injunction orders S & P to stop making and selling counterfeit cases and to destroy the counterfeit products.

OtterBox alleged that S & P sold counterfeit cases on eBay.com through the username “july7eleven.” S & P had a total of 2.5 million cases for sale on the site and sold “significant quantities” of the counterfeit cases in California, according to a complaint filed by OtterBox.

In March 2012, OtterBox bought one of the cases for $19.25 as part of an investigation. OtterBox representatives inspected the case and determined it was counterfeit.

Reached by phone, Ying Liu, a Flushing, N.Y., attorney representing S & P in the case, declined to comment.

OtterBox has seen a spate of imitators that have infringed on its trademarks. In 2012, OtterBox, in collaboration with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, confiscated more than 118,000 counterfeit items. The company also was awarded nearly $11 million in judgments and settlements.

“OtterBox was built on bringing our customers innovative, first-to-market products,” OtterBox CEO Brian Thomas said in a statement. “A lot of design, engineering and testing goes into each of our custom protective cases, which is why we take a hard line with companies creating and selling fake cases, as well as those infringing on our patents and trademarks.”

“Counterfeit products damage our reputation for delivering premium quality products because many consumers aren’t aware that they purchased a fake OtterBox,” Thomas added. “If a deal seems to be too good to be true, it probably is.”

OtterBox has more than 110 trademark registrations worldwide with several pending. Additionally, the company holds more than 190 patents in the U.S.

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