Ooni has won two significant legal battles against a Chinese manufacturer of copycat pizza ovens.
The first involved a two-year lawsuit in the Scottish courts where Ooni claimed that Foshan Hanshi (known by various names including Foshan Hanshi Heating Equipment Manufactuere [sic] Co Ltd), and its customer Flamo pizza ovens had infringed Ooni’s intellectual property rights.
The court has ordered Foshan Hanshi and Flamo to permanently stop infringing Ooni’s registered and unregistered design rights, declaring one of Foshan Hanshi’s UK registered designs invalid. As a result, both Flamo and Foshan Hanshi have been ordered to pay a total of £100,000 in damages and Ooni’s legal fees.
Under the ruling, both defenders must deliver up all of the offending products to allow Ooni to have these destroyed.
The second action involved the UK Intellectual Property Office declaring two of Foshan Hanshi’s UK registered designs for pizza ovens to be invalid. That decision followed Ooni’s application to the UKIPO, where Ooni argued that Foshan Hanshi’s registered designs were too close to the unique features of Ooni’s own Koda 12 and Koda 16 ovens, which are also protected by earlier-filed registered UK designs.
These actions and decisions affirm Ooni’s commitment to protecting the innovation of its award-winning product range by clamping down on the manufacture and distribution of imitation products.
Ooni has been internationally recognised as the creator of the at-home pizza oven category since it launched the world’s first portable wood-pellet fired pizza oven in 2012. The brand’s Koda range has received widespread industry recognition, with the unique, attractive design winning awards such Forbes’ ‘Best Pizza Oven’ as well as commendations from the likes of Wired and Wall Street Journal.
Designed by a team of expert, world-class engineers at its Edinburgh headquarters, all Ooni ovens are subject to rigorous quality control checks to ensure each product meets the high standard the brand has built its reputation on.
Christie McCluskey, General Counsel, at Ooni, said: "Ooni ovens are powered by market-leading technology and produced as a result of significant investment in product development - from the research stage, to design and final testing. We will take every measure to protect our originality, quality and craftsmanship.
“Innovation has always been at the heart of Ooni’s success and we work tirelessly to defend the integrity of our brand and products. These legal actions are aligned with our long-term strategy to grow the Ooni business and team and fire up our culture of innovation.”
ENDS
For further information, please contact Sophie Pell by emailing ooni@stripecommunications.com
About Ooni
Ooni is the creator and leader of the at-home pizza oven category. Since 2012, Ooni has been revolutionising the outdoor cooking landscape by creating products that elevate the joy of being together through great pizza. Known for its innovative and award-winning pizza ovens, with incredible design and advanced technology that cooks pizza in as little as 60 seconds, Ooni is a destination for pizza cooks, whether they’re looking for ovens, accessories, carefully curated ingredients or knowledge.
This spring, Ooni is set to revolutionise at-home baking with the launch of Halo Pro Spiral Dough Mixer. Marking a bold venture into a new market, Ooni's Halo Pro is powered by science and will use cutting edge technology to bring professional spiral mixing to the kitchens of baking enthusiasts and pizza makers alike.
A Certified B Corporation, Ooni strives to elevate at-home and outdoor cooking in a way that has a positive impact on the planet and its people. Learn more at uk.ooni.com
