Cisco Wins Latest Battle in War Against Chinese Counterfeiters

Cisco won a temporary legal ruling in federal court that orders four Chinese manufacturers to stop selling counterfeit networking equipment, The Wall Street Journal reports. The temporary injunction also requires online sellers, including Amazon, Alibaba, and eBay, to remove listings of the phony Cisco-branded products. Cisco won a temporary legal ruling in federal court that orders four Chinese manufacturers to stop selling counterfeit networking equipment, The Wall Street Journal reports. The temporary injunction also requires online sellers, including Amazon, Alibaba, and eBay, to remove listings of the phony Cisco-branded products. The four Chinese manufacturers — Shenzhen Tianheng Network Co., Gezhi Photonics Technology Co. Ltd., Shenzhen Sourcelight Technology Co., and Dariocom — are accused of producing counterfeit versions of Cisco’s transceivers. Cisco did not respond to a request for comment. The temporary ruling in federal court in the Eastern District of New York calls for the manufacturers’ assets to be frozen, and Cisco expects a permanent injunction to be handed down soon, according to The Wall Street Journal. The quartet of Chinese manufacturers produce more than half of all counterfeit transceivers, according to Rowan TELS Corp., a firm that helps companies uncover counterfeit products. Cisco has been battling Chinese manufacturers over the sale of spurious versions of its products for the better part of the last two decades. In 2010, the Justice Department and Department of Homeland Security seized counterfeit Cisco network equipment manufactured in China valued at $143 million. In 2003, Huawei admitted to copying Cisco’s router software after Cisco filed a patent-infringement suit against the Chinese vendor. The latest example of Chinese manufacturers stealing Cisco’s intellectual property and selling fake Cisco-branded equipment hangs like a shadow over the U.S. government’s ongoing trade war with China. A recent limited trade deal with China includes some commitments on intellectual property rights, but many of the key details of that agreement and long-term implications are still unknown. “We welcome the news that China will strengthen intellectual-property protections in the country,” Cisco General Counsel Mark Chandler told The Wall Street Journal. “We have worked with Chinese authorities over the years to raid facilities and shut down counterfeiters.” Cisco is also hoping that the latest legal win will embolden other network equipment companies to join an industry-wide effort to crack down on counterfeit products more forcefully via legal channels and other means. “We have a common interest in shutting down this activity,” Chandler said.