Coway has filed a lawsuit against Chungho Nais, claiming that its Summit Tower air purifier infringes on the design rights of Coway's Noble air purifier. This legal action marks the first official response since the establishment of a design monitoring task force in January, aimed at protecting design intellectual property rights.
According to industry sources on June 16, Coway submitted the lawsuit to the court on June 2, alleging that the Summit Tower air purifier, launched by Chungho Nais in February, violates its design rights.
The specific aspects Coway is contesting include the rectangular shape and proportions of the body, the design of the upper pop-up section, and the mechanism that allows the upper section to move vertically. Coway believes these elements closely resemble the key design features of the Noble air purifier, resulting in a similar overall aesthetic.
The lawsuit has escalated beyond a mere product similarity dispute to a significant issue of design rights protection. Coway applied for the relevant design rights in December 2020, prior to the launch of the Noble air purifier, and completed the registration in April 2021. The Noble series has since become a flagship design product for Coway in the premium air purifier market, leading the company to view the launch of similar products as a potential infringement on its brand assets.
Coway argues that Chungho Nais's product launch is not merely a coincidence of appearance but an unauthorized use of the results of Coway's investments and efforts. Consequently, Coway has determined that this constitutes not only a design rights infringement but also an act of unfair competition under the Unfair Competition Prevention Act.
In the home appliance industry, competition for premium products has expanded beyond performance to include design and suitability for interior spaces, making design rights disputes a key issue for brand differentiation.
Coway established the design monitoring task force in January, becoming the first in the industry to create a system for ongoing responses to similar and imitative designs. This lawsuit is the first official legal action taken since the task force became operational.
Kim Gi-pyo, head of Coway's design monitoring task force and Compliance Division, stated, "Design is a core asset that embodies the technology and creativity accumulated by a company over a long period. We will respond to intellectual property infringement in accordance with principles to maintain a fair competitive environment through the protection of legitimate rights."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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