Ruyan America and its China-based joint venture partner, Ruyan Group Holdings, has successfully asserted its intellectual property rights to the essential technology and design of the electronic cigarette, say company officials.
In a decision rendered in January 2009, Ruyan prevailed in a lawsuit against e-Cig, a China-based illicit manufacturer of electronic cigarettes and accessories. e-Cig was required to pay compensation to Ruyan for damages, destroy all of its existing stock of inventory and agree to never engage in the electronic cigarette business again.
The ruling was the first of what Ruyan expects to be a series of such decisions as it has initiated similar actions against other illegal China-based manufacturers, said William Bartkowski, president of Ruyan America.
Established in 2003 as Beijing SBT Ruyan Technology & Development, Ruyan lays claim to inventing atomisation technology that allows electronic cigarettes, pipes and cigars to vaporise nicotine and non nicotine solution-mixtures.
