On June 30, 2026, Marco Polo Holdings Co., Ltd. (马可波罗控股股份有限公司) received a favorable first-instance judgment from the Guangzhou Intellectual Property Court (广州知识产权法院) in a trademark infringement and unfair competition case  (Case No.: (2025) Yue 73 Min Chu No. 6174) against a Shenzhen (深圳) -based water purification technology company, a Shenzhen (深圳) -based water services technology company, and three individuals (Yuan, Liu, and Ye).

The Court fully supported the plaintiff’s key claims, recognized the plaintiff’s Class 19 “Marco Polo” trademark as a well-known trademark, and ordered the defendants and related entities to jointly compensate the plaintiff for economic losses and reasonable enforcement expenses totaling RMB 3 million. The defendants were also ordered to publish statements to eliminate adverse impact and cease all infringing activities.

In this case, multiple individuals controlled several water purification-related companies and intentionally imitated Marco Polo’s (马可波罗) well-known Class 19 tile trademark. They registered similar marks for Class 11 water purifiers and water purification equipment, adopted a similar company name (Chinese characters: “马可孛罗”), and established online and offline sales channels across multiple platforms and regions.

The defendants also promoted their products using misleading claims, including false references to CCTV exhibitions and “China Famous Brand” qualifications, in an attempt to capitalize on Marco Polo’s (马可波罗) market reputation accumulated over decades.

The Court determined that Marco Polo’s (马可波罗) Class 19 tile trademark had maintained well-known status since May 2005 up to the occurrence of the alleged infringement, and extended protection from Class 19 building tiles to Class 11 water purification equipment. The Court further found that the defendants’ business operations, personnel, and assets were substantially intertwined and constituted joint infringement. Considering the defendants’ long-term and extensive infringement activities and apparent bad faith, the Court fully supported the plaintiff’s claim for RMB 3 million in damages.

This case further illustrates the application of cross-class protection for well-known trademarks, providing judicial guidance on extending protection from traditional product categories to related industries. The full damages award reflects the courts' approach toward addressing bad-faith intellectual property infringement and strengthening enforcement measures, while safeguarding Marco Polo's (马可波罗) well-known trademark rights, trade name rights, and brand reputation.

Funto Law Firm acted as legal counsel for the plaintiff in this matter.