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Chang Tsi Assists TOTO in E-commerce Platform Rights Protection, Criminal Action Highlights Intellectual Property Protection!
Recently, the case of Xu and Liu selling counterfeiting "TOTO" goods, represented by the Chang Tsi team, was upheld by the Beijing Dongcheng District People's Court. The case involved a total of over 2.09 million yuan, with 906 counterfeit toilets sold. It stands as a typical example of trademark infringement in e-commerce, demonstrating significant implications for purifying the online business environment and strengthening criminal protection of brands.
From September 2023 to July 2024, defendants Xu and Liu knowingly sold counterfeiting "TOTO" toilets through Liu's registered online store "Luxury Smart Bathroom Home Business Department," using keywords like "TOTO Smart Home" and "TOTO Smart Toilet." The sales covered multiple areas including Beijing Dongcheng, severely infringing upon the brand's legal rights and disrupting market order.
Upon being commissioned, the Chang Tsi team promptly conducted investigations, sample purchases, and evidence organization. After determining that the sales amount met the criminal case filing standards in Beijing, the team reported the case to the Dongcheng District Public Security Bureau. Once filed, the team collaborated closely with the police to conduct thorough investigations, confirm criminal facts, secure electronic data, and accurately calculate the involved amounts and illegal profits, facilitating swift case filing, investigation, and prosecution. In March 2025, the defendants were apprehended.
The court found that the defendants' actions constituted the crime of selling goods with counterfeit registered trademarks, with particularly severe circumstances. Considering their confession, plea, full repayment of illegal gains, and Liu's role as an accomplice, the court ruled:
• Defendant Xu (principal offender): Three years and nine months imprisonment, with a fine of 200,000 yuan
• Defendant Liu (accomplice): One year and six months imprisonment, suspended for two years, with a fine of 10,000 yuan
Both defendants did not appeal, and the verdict is now effective.
The case highlights three core challenges of criminal cases involving online trademark infringement:
1. Strong concealment of online operations, difficulty in securing infringement evidence
Online store promotions, transactions, and logistics are completed online, making evidence easy to delete or alter. The Chang Tsi team used systematic evidence collection, preserving transaction records and promotional pages to solidify the basis for conviction. Large items like smart toilets have high sample purchase costs, long logistics cycles, and difficult unpacking and identification processes, with complicated and costly notarization and identification procedures.
2. Complex calculations of involved amounts and illegal gains
Faced with vast transaction data, the team accurately excluded invalid orders, locking in over 2.09 million yuan in real sales amounts, providing key evidence for criminal accountability.
3. Separation of registered and actual operating entities, difficulty in responsibility determination
The discrepancy between the registered store owner and actual controller was resolved by the Chang Tsi team coordinating with the police to analyze roles, fund flows, and operational trajectories, accurately distinguishing between principal and accomplice, ensuring appropriate sentencing.
4. Difficulty in linking online operations to offline sources
Online infringement cases often involve separated supply chains, where online stores serve only as display platforms, and goods are shipped from remote warehouses. This results in dispersed production, operation, storage, and delivery locations, creating jurisdictional conflicts, inefficiencies in coordination, and high enforcement costs. Additionally, counterfeit bathroom products are often produced in small workshops, urban villages, or concealed factories with no business registration or public information, making it extremely difficult to trace upstream sources.
This case judgment fully demonstrates:
• The internet is not beyond the reach of the law. Intellectual property rights of brand owners must be protected, and counterfeit sales on e-commerce platforms that meet the threshold constitute criminal offenses.
• Criminal enforcement is the strongest means of trademark protection. It serves as a powerful deterrent against large-scale, malicious infringement.
• Comprehensive investigation and evidence collection enable full-chain enforcement. By linking online operations to offline sources, this case effectively safeguarded the brand's reputation and consumer rights while promoting compliance in the e-commerce industry.
The Chang Tsi legal team specializes in intellectual property law services, focusing on trademark, patent, and copyright protection and dispute resolution. With extensive experience in handling complex cases such as online trademark infringement, e-commerce counterfeiting, and intellectual property-related criminal offenses, we provide precise and efficient legal services. Our mature case-handling system offers domestic and international brands one-stop protection solutions, ranging from civil enforcement to criminal accountability.
If you encounter legal issues related to online trademark infringement, counterfeit goods sales, or e-commerce platform violations, or need consultation and representation for intellectual property criminal protection, feel free to contact us. Our professional team is ready to safeguard your brand rights.
