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Bakugan's Spin Master Files U.S. Patent Lawsuit Against Mattel for 'Mecard' Toys
posted on by Karen Ressler
Canadian toy and media company Spin Master announced last Wednesday that it has filed suit in the Central District of California against Mattel for Mattel's sale of "Mecard" toys, which Spin Master alleges violate at least two of its patents.
Spin Master is claiming Mecard ("Turning Mecard" in Asia) infringes on its worldwide patent for the magnetic transformation feature in Bakugan toys. The company has already filed ongoing patent lawsuits against Mattel in Canada, Mexico, and Australia. Spin Master is seeking damages and permanent injunction.
Toy distributor Sonokong, the South Korean distributor of the Bakugan franchise until at least 2013, released the first Mecard toys in South Korea in 2014. The popular franchise had record-high sales for Sonokong following the debut of the animated series February 2015.
Spin Master previously filed suit against California-based reseller Hello Discount in October 2016 for selling imported Mecard toys. The Texas court ruled the following month that Hello Discount's sales of Mecard did violate Spin Master's patents.
Mattel launched the Mecard toys in the United States in March.
Spin Master has also filed similar patent lawsuits against Alpha Group's "Screechers Wild!" toys and GuangZhou Lingdong Creative Culture Technology's "Eonster Hunter" toys.
The Bakugan franchise is based on Spin Master and Sega Toys' combination of metal cards and marble-like magnetic toys that automatically transform into figures during gameplay. The franchise has been a bestseller in North America, and it won honors at Toy Fair's annual Toy of the Year Awards in 2009. Spin Master is planning a franchise revival with a television series in 2018 or 2019.
America's Cartoon Network began showing the first Bakugan Battle Brawlers anime series in February of 2008. It was followed by three sequel television series — Bakugan Battle Brawlers: New Vestroia, Bakugan Gundalian Invaders, and Bakugan: Mechtanium Surge — the last of which premiered in Canada and the United States in 2011. Baku Tech! Bakugan Gachi, a spinoff series adapting a manga by SHINGO, premiered in Japan in 2013.
Thanks to I Miss Bionix for the news tip.
