The operator of the online store Shein is suing the rival platform Temu in a court in Washington, USA. They accuse her of theft of trade secrets, copyright infringement and fraud. CNBC drew attention to this today, citing a court filing sent on Monday. Both companies have been filing civil lawsuits against each other for a long time with very similar or even identical accusations.
Temu Accused of Copying and Manipulation on the Platform
“In order to promote counterfeit versions of Shein products, Temu reproduced virtually identical copyrighted images of Shein products and used or instructed retailers to use them as promotional images on Temu’s website and mobile app,” the lawsuit states.
He further accuses his competitor of controlling every aspect of the activities of sellers on his platform. “It controls what products they can offer and at what prices they can sell them, encourages them to infringe on other people’s intellectual property, and even prevents them from removing their products from Temu’s website after admitting to infringement. This is not the behavior of a legitimate ‘marketplace’ third parties,” the submission reads.
Accusations and Claims
Both companies have sued each other in the past. In December of last year, the Boston company WhaleCo, which operates In the US , she sued Shein in court in Washington due to copyright and “mafia intimidation of suppliers”. A spokesman for Temu told CNBC at the time that Shein “unlawfully detained traders” and forcibly removed their phones from which he stole accounts, traders’ passwords and stole trade secrets.
In October of last year, both parties withdrew other lawsuits that they had previously filed against each other. In December 2022, Shein sued Temu for intellectual property infringement, while Temu accused Shein of threats and coercing producers into exclusive partnerships in July.
Temu vs. Shein
Both companies are fierce competitors in the field of cheap online shopping. Temu focuses on selling very cheap goods made in China, from fashion to household products, targeting foreign consumers.
Shein was founded in China in 2008. It uses data analysis to predict customer demand and produce clothing in small batches. This effectively controls costs and inventory. She became a pioneer of ultra-fast fashion. It launched direct-to-consumer sales in the US during the covid-19 pandemic and quickly became one of the most downloaded shopping apps in the country. The platform has been criticized for a long time and has been sued by a number of manufacturers in the past due to plagiarism, for example Ralph Lauren or Dr Martens.
Source: čtk
