As China’s leading shopping apps Shein and Temu continue legal battles in the U.S., Shein recently filed another lawsuit against Temu.
According to the U.S. economic media CNBC on the 20th local time, Shein filed a complaint in federal court in Washington, D.C., the day before asking Temu to prevent the act, saying it had infringed on copyright by stealing and copying its designs.
“Temu promises very low prices and encourages U.S. consumers to download and use mobile applications, but it loses money every time it sells because the price of the product is so low that it has to be subsidized,” Shein said.
“Temu can minimize huge losses only if it infringes on the copyright of others and encourages sellers to sell counterfeit or substandard goods,” it added.
Shein alleged that at least one of Temu’s employees stole trade secrets and internal pricing information about Shein’s popular products, prompting sellers to copy the products equally.
Shein also attached a photograph of the site captured as a lawsuit, saying that Temu posted an advertisement on the social media X (formerly Twitter) platform that was falsely decorated like a Shein site, causing users who clicked on it to actually flow into the Temu site.
The 80-page lawsuit filed by Shein also included more than 10 examples of clothing and product designs that Temu claims were stolen, CNBC said.
Temu previously filed a lawsuit in federal court in December last year, alleging that Shein had “threatened” suppliers in a “mafia manner” to impede fair competition.
Shein, founded in China, has grown rapidly by selling low-cost clothing online, including shoes that do not exceed $20 and dresses that cost $10, and entered the U.S., Europe and Asia in 2017.
Temu, an overseas shopping app from Chinese e-commerce giant Pinduoduo, promotes selling clothing and other products at lower prices than Shein, and entered the U.S. in September 2022.
SALLY LEE
US ASIA JOURNAL
