Toymaker Lego (Billund / Denmark; www.lego.com) has won a case in the China Shantou Intermediate People’s Court relating to certain "Bela"-branded Lego look-alike products. Lego announced on 7 December that the court had ruled in September that the products infringed its copyright, and the manufacturing and selling of those products constituted acts of unfair competition.

The case was the first that Lego has filed for anti-competitive behaviour in China and was against two Chinese companies that made and sold Bela products that were almost identical to the Danish firm’s iconic plastic products. The Chinese firms were ordered to stop copying the packaging and logos of Lego products as of November.

The court stated that Lego had a distinctive and unique appearance of certain decorative aspects of its packaging across particular product lines, which in this case related to the Lego "Friends" brand.

Peter Thorslund Kjær, vice president of Lego’s legal affairs, said the toymaker saw the ruling as a strong indication of China’s continued focus on proper intellectual property protection and enforcement. "We think this is very important for the continued development of a favourable business environment for all companies operating in the Chinese market," he said.