painball companys back in the courtroom again

[Darkie02]

just seen this feel so disappointed of large paintball company's again trying to bully compaction out of business with a patient that is way to general that I think should have never been allowed in the first place. whats next only one company can make a paintball round?

 

[Missy-Q]

Please don't join the army of morons.
This is not 'bullying'. This is one company defending its intellectual property against another. It happened every day in every industry.

Valken got sued by Kee for ripping of Marbs years ago. Now they are doing the same exact thing to GI and seem surprised to get the same result again. The patent is 20 years old and its very well known. It has been tested, and it stood.
Maybe ask yourself why Valken didn't make the design look different this time. maybe a checkered pattern would have been a better idea? All they had to do was something original. I could think of 10 things right now that would be distinctive without infringing on the patent.

You don't think the patent should have been allowed in the first place?
Thing is - It was. Crying over a 20 year old decision won't change the landscape. Do you know much about Valken? Do you know much about National Paintball Supply? Do you have any of the context that this knowledge would provide? Do you know who's put more paintball companies out of business through aggressive business practice than anyone else in this industry? Do you know who has ripped off more products from more of our industry's creative minds than anyone else?
Now, I know that you don't have the answers to these questions. If you did , you would not have made the post you made. No way.
I think you should look for the answers though, so that you can be better informed. I promise you will not find these answers on PB Nation. You will only find more unjustified outrage, mixed with a generous supply of ignorance and spite.

 

[Spikerz]

Image was too small, is it a patent or a trademark?

I can understand it if it's a trademark, but a patent would be weird, unless it's on the process for marking the swirly shell.

If it is a patent, they last either 17 or 20 years, depending on when they were filed. Trademarks continue thanks to Disney for like forever, as long as you keep renewing them every 10 years.

**Reads some more** It does look like a trademark infringement. To be fair under trademark law, there's the premise of if you can get one product confused for the other. There's a run of redemption that DOES look a lot like the swirly pattern of Marberliser.

Pissing contest it may be, but trademark lawyers are expensive, I'd probably do the same thing. Trademark law has no criminal component, so if he wanted Gino can lock this up for years in court. The smart play would just be to stick to solid colors/stripes/half and half colored shells. Anything.

 

[Tony Harrison]

Outrage, ignorance & spite are what keeps our great countries running, @Missy-Q.

Anyway, I smell speed posting = classified access.

 

[Canon Fodder]

Does seem a little foolish to knowingly use a pattern that they have already run into legal issues with before.