A court in Beijing today fined two Chinese manufacturers for infringing the patent on a British company's kettle design.

The ruling was welcomed by Trevor Bayliss, who thanked the Chinese judicial system for standing up for British inventors.

Mr Baylis who is best known for inventing the wind-up radio, this week wrote to Madam Fu Ying, the Chinese ambassador to the UK, to thank the country for the court's decision.

The 72-year-old, who champions the rights of inventors, said patenting ideas can be costly and it is important that those patents are respected.

His letter to Fu Ying follows the case involving Isle of Man-based Strix Ltd, which manufactures electric kettle controls, who took legal action against two Chinese manufacturers for patent infringements.

Strix said a court in Beijing ruled in December that its patent was valid.

The court fined Zhejiang Jiatai Electrical Appliance Manufacture Co Ltd and Leqing FaDa Electrical Appliance Co Ltd and ordered both companies to stop producing the kettle controls.

Strix said two kettle manufacturers, Zhongshan WeiLing Electrical Appliance Co Ltd and Zhongshan Shunlong Century Electrical Appliance Co Ltd, were also ordered to stop the production and sale of two models containing those controls.

The Chinese court's decision to back the British firm rather than its own businesses was a positive sign for future relations, Bayliss said.

'It means that we can trust the Chinese,' he said.
                                                                                               Source: China IP News