LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A federal court jury in New York ruled unanimously in favor of promotional product supplier ETS Express, Inc., which had been sued for alleged trademark infringement by Can’t Live Without It, LLC, dba S'well Bottle.
At the end of the two-week trial in federal court in the Southern District of New York (Docket No. 17cv3506 (JSR)), the jury decided on March 29 that ETS Express (www.ETSExpress.com) is not liable on all counts. Bottles like the h2go® Force – the bottle in question in the litigation – have existed since long before S’well launched its product in 2010, argued Sharon Eyal, CEO of ETS Express. ETS demonstrated that similar cola-shaped bottles have existed for some time, and are currently sold by many resellers in both the retail and the promotional product markets. “A company can’t simply take an existing design, put its name on it, and claim it’s theirs,” said Eyal.
After sending a cease-and-desist letter to ETS in 2014, ETS replied and heard nothing further until S’well sued the Southern California-based supplier in May 2017. ETS argued that S’well’s bottle was generic because dozens of suppliers in the promotional and retail sectors offer similar cola shape bottles. “I feel vindicated that the jury ruled in ETS’s favor, and that we were able to deliver a win for the industry,” Eyal said.
ETS Express, a Top 40 promotional products supplier, was founded in 1985 by Ely Eastman, and has been an industry leader in the drinkware category ever since.
