Unitalen client Tencent’s 微信 / WeChat is one of the most well-known mobile app for instant messaging. The Defendant,深圳微信食品公司 (Shenzhen Weixin Foods Co., Ltd.), was registered in 2015 and opened a series of restaurants, offline supermarkets, online malls using the name of “微信食品 Wechat Food”, taking advantage of the brand value of 微信 and Wechat in their franchise operation and gaining huge amount of illegal profit. Even after being sued by Tencent, the Defendant continued to expand the scope of infringement activities, and used “微信食品” logo to open logistics industrial parks, office buildings, hotels, etc. throughout the country.

In the verdict issued by Beijing IP Court over the above trademark infringement and unfair competition dispute, it is decided that

1. The Defendant shall immediately cease its infringement of the well-known trademarks 微信 and “Wechat”;
2. The Defendant shall immediately stop using the current company name and change name within 10 days;
3. The Defendant shall compensate Tencent for 10 million yuan’s economic loss.