Chinese President Xi Jinping Visits Washington State (Photo : Getty Images)
Even if Facebook is banned in China, the company founded by Mark Zuckerberg won a trademark lawsuit in the Asian giant.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday that in April, the Beijing Higher People's Court ruled in favor of Facebook in a trademark lawsuit filed by Zhujiang Beverage. The company, based in Zhongshan, sells milk-flavored porridge and drinks and claimed to have trademarked “face book” (or “lian shu”) in 2011.
CNET reported that among the other products of Zhongshan Pearl River are canned vegetables, potato chips, coffee, tea, candy and juices.
However, China’s trademark agency, the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board, approved Zhujiang’s application in 2014 only. But the Beijing court said that the board’s approval was revoked.
In defending its use of “lian shu,” Liu Hongqun, marketing manager of the beverage company, said, “Lian shu is something very Chinese. We have lian shu in traditional operas.” These are the intricate masks using in operas to indicate a historical character.
Facebook actually won the original lawsuit, but the beverage firm appealed the case but lost again. In battling to keep the trademark, Liu pointed out that the most popular social media portal has been blocked in mainland China since 2009.
“How many Chinese customers get access to or sign up for Facebook in mainland China? Where can we get access to this product in mainland China?” pointed out Liu.
Weibo users think Facebook’s court victory is linked with Zuckerberg’s “adulation for China,” citing his recent jog in Beijing even if it was a heavily polluted day and the Chinese President Xi Jinping’s book “The Governance of China” prominently displayed on Zuckerbergs desk which China’s internet czar saw when he visited the U.S.
It also helps that Zuckerberg speaks Mandarin such as his Lunar New Year greeting and speech at Tsinghua University.
