PANArt Hangbau AG against Hand Steel Pan, Jacopo Marrocchelli, Brescia/Italien

PANArt Hangbau AG has come across two products on the Internet that has violated several rights. These products of the company Hand Steel Pan in person of Jacopo Marrocchelliviolated the following rights:

• Protected design. The design of the PANArt Hang® Gubal® and the Hang® Balu with its characteristic central opening in the center of the top shell (called Gu) with the surrounding tonal fields (notes) was copied identically by J.Marrocchelli, also the lower side with the typical „Gugel“ was copied.
  
  This is a clear violation of the design protection DM07963.
  
  

• Trademark infringement.The trademark Hang® Gubal®is a protected trademark name. Hand Steel Pan marketed this product under the name "GU-PAN". The phonetic too close relationship to the protected brand name "Gubal" represented a violation of the trademark protection right.

PANArt Hangbau AG therefore took legal action against Hand Steel Pan /Jacopo Marrocchelli and requested for a preliminary injunction. Efforts to resolve the conflict with J. Marrocchelli peacefully failed.

The Court of Milan, Section 14, issued on December 21, 2018 its decision in this interim injunction proceeding, which includes the following:

• The company Hand Pan Steel and Mr Jacopo Marrocchelli have with immediate effect to refrain from using the trademark "Gu-pan" and from manufacturing, marketing, advertising and selling instruments with this name.
• The court prohibits Hand Pan Steel and Mr Jacopo Marrocchelli from manufacturing, promoting or selling any other instrument that infringes the internationally registered design of Gubal DM079631.
• The court ordered Hand Pan Steel and Mr Jacopo Marrocchelli to pay €2,000 for each further infringement of the design if he made further copies of the instrument.
• The court ordered Marrocchelli to pay the legal costs of PANArt AG in the amount of € 2,300.

The other party has not lodged an appeal and the judgment is therefore final.

PANArt Hangbau AG is pleased with the judgment and the fact that we have successfully defended the design of the Hang Gubal, Hang Balu and the brand name Gubal. The inwardly directed funnel-shaped resonance opening in connection with the gugel-shaped resonance body is a genuine design from the hands of the PANArt tuners. Such an obvious plagiarism, the attempt to use a protected design and brand name for one's own commercial purposes was unacceptible. PANArt Hangbau AG might take the same action in the event of future infringements.