Michael Jordan Awarded $46,000 for ‘Emotional Damages’ in China Trademark Suit

Michael Jordan’s name and logo are legendary, but for some reason, Michael Jordan still doesn’t own the rights to his own name in China. Jordan has been embroiled in trademark suits in China for over a year.  Now it looks like he’ll get a bit of money, as a Shanghai court ruled Wednesday that a Chinese sportswear and shoe manufacturer that has used his name for decades did so without authorization, and with the intention to trick consumers into thinking it was Jordan’s brand.

“Qiaodan” is the Chinese translation of Jordan.

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Via Variety:

The Qiaodan Sports Company, whose name is the Chinese translation of “Jordan,” must compensate the five-time MVP $46,000 (RMB300,000) for “emotional damages” and $7,600 (RMB50,000) for legal expenses incurred — chump change for the legendary player estimated by Forbes to have a net worth of $1.6 billion.

The company must stop using the Chinese characters of “Qiaodan” in its corporate name and product trademarks, and issue a public apology in print and online clarifying that it has no connection to the basketballer himself, the court ruled. It must also take “reasonable measures” to indicate and clarify that its older trademarks have no actual ties to the NBA star.

The Shanghai No. 2 Intermediate People's Court orders Chinese company Qiaodan Sports to apologize publicly for infringement of the name #MichaelJordan. The company will be banned from using the trademark and will pay 300,000 yuan for damages. https://t.co/m1eQxeRfcL pic.twitter.com/MGaayD2mB0

— The Paper 澎湃新闻 (@thepapercn) December 30, 2020

The fact that they’re still allowed to use the name Jordan is ridiculous.

MJ will be okay, but don’t believe for one minute he’ll stop fighting these guys. According to the report,  Jordan has filed 80 lawsuits against the firm since 2012.

You don’t want to get into a competitive battle with MJ,  he’s not going to lose.

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