The Vietnamese makers of the kids’ cartoon Wolfoo, Sconnect, which is being sued by the makers of Peppa Pig, eOne, for allegedly infringing its intellectual property rights, has complained to the Vietnamese authorities that additions to the lawsuit are outside of the scope of the lawsuit, Vietnam Net is reporting. It’s not clear what Sconnect expects of the Vietnamese authorities.
Of note: The unauthorised reproduction of trademarks and copyrighted works in Vietnam is common. The practice has been normalised for a long time, though this is beginning to change as Vietnam becomes more integrated into the global economic system.
What’s more interesting about this case, however, is how Sconnect has worked to control the narrative in the domestic media. The article linked above is strongly one-sided and omits key information such as allegations that Peppa Pig appeared in the background of several Wolfoo videos or that the title of one Wolfoo video included Peppa Pig’s name. Furthermore, there is no evidence that the author has made any attempt to offer eOne a right of reply.
See also: Vietnam animation in legal dispute with Peppa Pig to air on China TV