BIZCHINA / Wahaha vs Danone
Wahaha in troubled waters
By Wang Zhenghua (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-07-13 09:52
SHANGHAI: It's exactly the same bottled water with healthy and
energetic-looking pop star Wang Lee-Hom as the endorser.
But the water, under the Wahaha brand name, has hit turbulent times as it
is now part of a bitter dispute over ownership of the well-known brand.
French food giant Groupe Danone SA said yesterday it filed a counterclaim
with an arbitrator in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang
Province, rejecting statements made by its Chinese joint venture partner
Wahaha Group in a trademark dispute.
Danone's latest legal action comes in response to Wahaha Group's request
last month for arbitration in Hangzhou to seek termination of a 1996
trademark transfer agreement it signed with joint venture partner Danone.
Wahaha alleged the agreement failed to get approval from China's State
trademark office.
Danone and Wahaha have exchanged lawsuits and arbitration claims in three
nations in recent months, with both sides employing teams of lawyers in
an increasingly contentious dispute that has cast a dark cloud over the
once-successful Sino-foreign commercial partnership.
"Danone believes the arbitration application of Wahaha is intended to
achieve its ultimate purpose of not transferring its trademarks by making
excuses," Danone legal counsel Randall Lewis said at a press conference
yesterday.
He said the actions of Wahaha violate the 1996 agreement, and deviate
from the fundamental principles of good faith and business ethics.
The breach of the joint venture agreement has caused substantial economic
losses to it, he said.
Danone said the joint venture paid 50 million yuan in cash to Wahaha for
the transfer of the trademark, which was approved by the Hangzhou
government.
(For more biz stories, please visit Industry Updates)
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