TAYLORMADE FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST COSTCO OVER KIRKLAND SIGNATURE IRONS

[Parshooter36]

15 hours ago, Shrek74 said:

So are they filing lawsuits against Sub70, Takomo, Caley, Haywood, Mizuno, Callaway, Cobra, and every other brand for the same thing? They all have hollow-body irons at this point.

PXG could file suit against Taylormade since their Gen1 hollow-body came out before the P790's did.

I thought PXG did sue TM when the OG P790's came out. 

[taylorjonasher]

35 minutes ago, JAYER38 said:

I believe once the suit is filed they have to stop sales until it is resolved but I'm sure that's somewhere in the fine print we wont get to see. I can only speak from my basic knowledge after staying at a holiday inn express haha

I'm sure TM already sent a cease and decist, but a judge will have to issue an injunction to enforce it. Law and Order taught me that.

Edited February 2 by taylorjonasher

[PJVicary]

17 hours ago, GolfSpy BOS said:

I can’t say I’m surprised. The Kirkland irons appear to be a mirror image of the TaylorMade P-790s. TM spend $millions on research design and development and would not sit back and let this go. Look for a quick settlement as Costco do not like to see bad press. What were they thinking? 

https://mygolfspy.com/news-opinion/taylormade-files-lawsuit-against-costco-over-kirkland-signature-irons/

 

Big news dropping today!

Click over to the full story to read more but here are the highlights:

• Yesterday, TaylorMade filed a lawsuit against Costco Wholesale and Southern California Design Company over willful patent infringement in regards to Costco’s new Kirkland Signature Players Irons.
• Not surprisingly this is due to similarity with the P-790 irons.  I mean, who didn't see that coming right?
• Sort of surprisingly SCDC (Southern California Design Company) is believed to be the manufacturer of the Kirkland irons appears to also be tied to brand Indi Golf.
• Also noted in the claims is that the Costco irons do not actually contain any urethane inserts as advertised.

 

I'm sure we'll hear more as the story progresses.

 

What do you spies think?

 

[Friendship Teddybear]

So, if Costco copies the p790, but the ksigs don't have a urethane insert, does that mean Taylormade is admitting the p790s don't have one either? I realize they can be similar in other ways, but it would be an interesting world for this to be the way Taylormade blew itself up. 

[Shrek74]

56 minutes ago, Parshooter36 said:

I thought PXG did sue TM when the OG P790's came out. 

It's very possible. That was a long time ago and one would have to research it. I'm sure this happens all the time, but this one just happened to get the headlines many others don't.

[BringerofRain]

1 hour ago, JAYER38 said:

I believe once the suit is filed they have to stop sales until it is resolved but I'm sure that's somewhere in the fine print we wont get to see. I can only speak from my basic knowledge after staying at a holiday inn express haha

 

[MaxEntropy]

15 hours ago, MattWillGolf said:

Golf certainly has a history of “borrowing” design features. Ping “Ansers” appear in the portfolios of nearly every manufacturer as well as boutique putter makers. Not sure how this is any different. But maybe a legal expert can comment.

I'm with you. Almost everyone also has a putter with striking similarities in appearance to the Spider line. Why have there been no lawsuits?

[fixyurdivot]

When I first read the thread title, I got really excited and thought... "yes, finally one of the OEM's filed suit against the USGA and R&A"... so disappointed . 

The current world market of stolen IP, copyrights, and knock-off's, is in full bloom.  My wife simply stopped trying to protect her photography (for the most part) - realizing it was a loss cause.  It will be interesting to see how this plays out and whether TM can convince the courts the Signature's are a copy.  Lot's of clubs look like lot's of other clubs... just saying.

The only thing for sure is that the billable hours will eventually be covered by we consumers.

[berkeleybob]

Regarding the Anser design, the fantasy in my head was that that design was never arduously protected in the beginning and so became an easy target for copying.

I’m pretty naive about these things, but when I bought my KS1 putter I just assumed that an OEM was behind it, and like Royal Crown cola with generic grocery brands, they were just doubling their shelf space. I would have thought that is how Kirkland Signature works with all their branded products.

I mean, would it not have been a coup for someone like TaylorMade to be behind KSig’s irons, selling both to the “high-end” golfer and to the masses as well? 

[BringerofRain]

1 hour ago, MaxEntropy said:

I'm with you. Almost everyone also has a putter with striking similarities in appearance to the Spider line. Why have there been no lawsuits?

I’m going to guess there are no law suits because the major brands all go to Vegas and party together so it’s a tight knit little club. 
 

When an outsider Comes in and allegedly steals your stuff and starts taking that sweet  cash out of your pocket that’s when you get sued. 

[GaDawg]

I will just keep playing my old faithful.

 

Edited February 2 by GaDawg

[Willie T]

I think it’s the most sincere form of flattery and I’m not sure why TM feels so threatened.  Granted the P790 has been a massive win, but I don’t see them losing significant share to Costco.  It reminds me of when  Japanese guitar makers were sued in the “lawsuit era” for making their guitars too much like “Fender Stratocaster” or “Gibson Les Paul”.  Costco will. Capitulate or “redesign” to get away from TM’s design.  TItleist while having won against their ball may bide their time on the Costco driver to see how the courts work with TM’s case.   

[Crashtestdummy]

Is Titleist next up with a lawsuit on their driver?