Someone's suing paintball.....OMG it's not Smart Parts!

[DRAGON]

Heckler & Koch, Inc. v. BT Paintball Designs, Inc.

Lawsuit Details

RFC Case Number:T-H09-689BCourt Case Number:1:09-cv-00689-DFH-TAB
File Date:Wednesday, June 03, 2009
Plaintiff:Heckler & Koch, Inc.
Plaintiff Counsel: Brian J. McGinnis, Darlene R. Seymour of Continental Enterprises
Defendant:BT Paintball Designs, Inc.
Cause:15:1125 Trademark Infringement (Lanham Act)
Court:Indiana Southern District Court
Judge: Judge David Frank Hamilton
Referred To: Magistrate Judge Tim A. Baker

Selected short subject affects........

Dear ******,

You recently listed the following auction-style listing:

- Tippmann X7 w/E-Grip Package + Apex + Vest + HPA Tank

The listing was removed because it violated eBay policy.

The rights owner, Heckler & Koch, notified eBay that this listing violates intellectual property rights. When eBay receives a report of this type of violation, we remove the listing to comply with the law.

The rights owner reported the following information:

Your auction has been terminated because the Tippmann X7, A5, X36 Special Ops and/or other brand conversion/modification kits and or paintball markers being advertised for sale by you is used exclusively for the purpose of creating an unlicensed paintball replica of the H&K MP5®, G36® and/or UMP®. The H&K MP5®, G36® and/or UMP® designation and shape are the sole property of H&K and may not be used without its permission. Heckler and Koch does NOT license any manufacturer to make any modification kits that would replicate any Heckler and Koch weapons. H&K vigorously protects their trademarks and intellectual property at all levels.

Trademark infringement is unlawful and violates eBay's policies. A trademark is a unique sign (such as a name, word, phrase, logo, or symbol) that a company uses to identify its products and/or services.

http://www.hotshotpaintball.com/merchant2/graphics/00000001/BT-TM-7.jpg

http://morrow-industries.com/morrow-project-blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/mp7_side.jpg

Pretty sure other companies are involved in this as well. Wait till they get ahold of the airsoft manufacturers -

I predict a sale on TM-7's soon - ;)

[bigred76]

They're going after a bunch of airsoft companies as well as Tippmann. Good for H&K, I've been waiting for this for a loooooooong time.

[ferret15]

oh lol, i'm excited to see these guys pull something out of there ass, I've been wondering how they got away with that for a while now.

[TheDarkShadow]

Oh snap!

[DFSniper]

lol. interesting.

[marvin-martian]

haha. this is going to be fun to watch...

[slim and shady]

Well I suppose thats bein in the making for some time.

[TheDarkShadow]

after they came out with the TM7, I'm sure they figured that they had more than enough evidence to get them good

[Ibuildmyguns]

having a hard time getting into it. It isnt like they are in the same sellers market. Perhaps I just dont get it, wouldnt be the first time and wont be the last.

[bigred76]

Well, look at the BT/Tippmann markers. They look like H&K firearms, and thus violate trademarks.

[HelpDeskHustler]

sp is next... they have the sp8 thats just like the xm8 from HK

[XSiv Force]

sp 8 arnt produced any more are they?
I dont think that they would try to sue a company that has stopped making a gun

[Hob Hayward]

lol...

[Ibuildmyguns]

I would think that rap is safe anyway. they sell to military and police. so being a betting man, they have contracts with places like H&K. :D

[DRAGON]

Wait till Colt gets a load of this. MilSim is goin down baby! - :dodgy:

[Karnivor'sFan]

Wait till Colt gets a load of this. MilSim is goin down baby! - :dodgy:
is that a Gay(rainbow) dodgy?

:dodgy:
sp is next... they have the sp8 thats just like the xm8 from HK
Cant wait for them to taste what they did !(lol)

[HelpDeskHustler]

sp 8 arnt produced any more are they?
I dont think that they would try to sue a company that has stopped making a gun

they still make them.

[XSiv Force]

yeah i went onto the sp website and saw they still sell them......but we have no idea if sp does in fact pay a royalty or not

[DFSniper]

worst-troll-ever-award aside, any news on any more HK suing? i need to pick up a 416 shroud before OpsGear isnt allowed to sell em anymore!

[DRAGON]

any news on any more HK suing?

Word I got was H&K could only sue for PIA design. That is, exact external and internal function design such as specific parts of the assembly. Since the paintball marker version does not duplicate such parts, the idea of sueing for extrernal look similarities was only a big phail....case/closed -

[DFSniper]

Sweet. Thanks drago

[DRAGON]

Well whoda evar thunk this was still going on? I thought it was done a while ago. Evedently they've come to a final agreement. Here's the dirt:

KEE to Produce BT Markers with H&K Emblem

Sewell, NJ, August 9th, 2010 KEE Action Sports LLC. KEE Action Sports and Heckler & Koch announced that they had resolved their dispute regarding KEE's BT Delta, BT Delta Elite and BT TM-7 markers. The settlement provides that KEE and its customers may continue to market these three markers. Newly manufactured Delta, Delta Elite and TM-7s will shortly begin bearing an H&K emblem. The three markers will be sub-licensed through Umarex, the worldwide exclusive H&K licensee for paintball products.