Blata battles copies

Czech firm Blata has stepped up its fight against Chinese copies of the Minibike, Mini Motard, Quadard and Origami B1 with backing from official bodies on three continents.

The cheap Chinese copies infringe European and world-wide resgistered designs and trademarks. There are also concerns the copies are poor quality, sold without any form of public or product liability, and there is a lack of technical back-up and spare parts.

Blata has now worked with European, American and Chinese Trading Standards offices, customs & excise departments, internet companies and hosts and local government agenices to combat the problem, with many internet sites targetted. The Chinese government is working closely with Blata, and firms being targetted range from dealers to manufacturers.