Epson launches patent infringement lawsuit

September 7, 2018

The OEM has filed the suit against FTrade Inc., GPC Trading, and Wei Feng Li, in the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

The action accuses the defendants of infringement of three of Epson’s patents – United States Patent No. 6,502,917 (“the ‘917 patent”), United States Patent No. 8,794,749 (“the ‘749 patent”), and United States Patent No. 8,454,116 (“the ‘116 patent”) – collectively known in this case as “the Epson patents.” The patents were allegedly violated through the manufacture and sale of aftermarket ink cartridges for use with Epson printers.

The accused parties are FTrade Inc., also trading as Valuetoner, and Hong Kong-based GPC Trading, which operates as GPC Image in the United States; both have also recently been subject to legal action from Canon. Also named as a defendant is individual Wei Feng Li, who is described in court papers as the sole officer and/or general manager of FTrade. They are accused of selling cartridges that violate the IP of Epson, both through their own websites and across various other e-commerce platforms, including Amazon and eBay.

The OEM is seeking a trial by jury, and a ruling that not only are the aforementioned Epson patents “valid and enforceable”, but that the above defendants are infringing them, wilfully; as a consequence, Epson is filing for the defendants and

their “subsidiaries, affiliates, parents, successors, assigns, officers, agents, representatives, servants, and employees”, to be preliminarily and permanently enjoined from continued infringement.

It is also seeking full payment of its legal costs pertaining to the case.