SAN FRANCISCO – A mobile phone product company based in San Francisco alleges a Minnesota company copied its patented design for a phone mount.
Kenu Inc. filed a complaint on Sept. 8 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California against Established Brands Inc. and Does 1-10 citing patent infringement, trade dress infringement, unfair competition and other counts.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff alleges that in 2013, it released its original and first version of the Airframe, a portable hands-free, in-car mount for mobile devices. The plaintiff claims that the defendant has copied its patented product under the Bits Made brand, which shares an identical design and purpose to the plaintiff's product.
The plaintiff holds Established Brands Inc. and Does 1-10 responsible because the defendants allegedly caused confusion among consumers as to the true source and affiliation of the infringing product, introduced a fake product to the market and obtained profit at the expense of plaintiff's goodwill and reputation.
The plaintiff requests a trial by jury and seeks judgment against defendants, injunctive relief, royalties, lost profits, attorneys' fees, costs and other relief as the court deems appropriate. It is represented by Marcus T. Hall, Dean A. Morehous, Craig C. Crockett and Ryan A. Lewis of Troutman Sanders LLP in San Francisco.
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California Case number 16-cv-05182