Chinese Court Sides With Starbucks

New York City, Starbucks won a copyright infringement lawsuit in China, where a Chinese coffee chain called Xingbake was ordered to pay 50,000 yuan ($62,500) in damages. “Xing” means “star” in Chinese, and, to the ears of Starbucks lawyers, “bake” sounds very similar to “bucks.” The logos of the two companies also seemed too similar for Starbucks’ executives.

Lu Guoqiang, chief judge in the case, ruled in favor of the Seattle-based Starbucks. The court said Starbucks has the right to its name in English and Chinese. Trademark infringement is widespread in China.