The Cellar - Alternative Social Media

The fetish business is now 'mainstream' and wholly legit.

It must be, because somebody has just sued somebody else over a patent infringement:

Quote:

A metalworker who infringed a design right to a frame which supports a leather sling used for "bondage sexual activities" must pay a penalty, a judge has ruled.

Detail of the dispute between engineer Derek Ball and designer Uwe Haiss emerged in the summer of 2013 following a hearing in a specialist patents court in London.

Mr Haiss - who was a director of Uwug Ltd - claimed that Mr Ball, a mechanical engineer who carried out testing on airliners and owned a firm which produces metalwork for the fetish industry, had breached registered design rights to the frame and sling. Mr Ball disputed the claim.

Recorder Amanda Michaels concluded that Mr Ball had infringed a design right to the frame but not to the sling.

Now another judge has ruled that Mr Haiss should get damages.

Judge Richard Hacon says Mr Haiss is entitled to 10 per cent of the sale price on each "infringing frame sold by Mr Ball to a third party".

The judge, who had been told that a batch of 45 frames had cost nearly £10,000, said the sum due would have to be calculated by lawyers.

Detail of his decision emerged in a written ruling delivered today.

No doubt Flywheel, Shyster and Flywheel are establishing a specialist division for this type of work, even as I type.

Daily Telegraph (With a picture ;))