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ARTICLE · 19 JANUARY 2018

Redbubble defeated in Pokémon battle: infringement of copyright

Carroll & O'Dea
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This recent Federal Court decision shows how consumer and copyright laws can interact with a developing digital economy.

AustraliaIntellectual Property
Selwyn Black
Selwyn Black
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Pokémon Company International, Inc. v Redbubble Ltd [2017] FCA 1541 is a recent decision of the Federal Court which shows how consumer and copyright laws can interact with the developing digital economy.

The facts

  1. The Pokémon Company International, Inc. (Pokémon Company) oversees the licensing of Pokémon products in Australia.
  2. Redbubble Ltd (Redbubble) operates an online marketplace that enables artists to upload images or words to the Redbubble website. That work is then applied onto products such as clothing and mugs, which customers can purchase.
  3. Images of Pokémon characters were uploaded to the Redbubble website by various artists.
  4. Google searches of the word "shirt" and the name of certain Pokémon characters would result in sponsored and non-sponsored Redbubble results for shirts bearing the uploaded image of the Pokémon characters.

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