| Temporary
Restraining Orders and Preliminary Injunctions Granted in New York
and Florida as Savvier Vigorously Prosecutes Its Copyright and Trademark
rights
CARLSBAD, Calif.,
October 20, 2004
Savvier announced
today that it has recently been granted temporary restraining and
preliminary injunction orders against distributors suspected of
illegally distributing counterfeit 6 Second Abs products. Court
orders were granted in New York and Florida and prohibit Drop Ship
Solutions of Brooklyn, New York and Salco International, of Clearwater,
Florida from selling specified Savvier products during the pendency
of the action. Savvier is vigorously defending their patent, copyright,
and trademark rights on 6 Second Abs in an effort to protect the
consumer from inferior quality merchandise. Savvier has also served
cease and desist letters against several additional distributors
and further investigations and actions are pending as Savvier continues
to shut down counterfeiters in an ongoing sweep of companies suspected
of selling counterfeit product.
On June 29,
2004, Savvier and private investigators served the temporary restraining
order at the offices of Drop Ship Solutions and its owner Mitchell
Atiles, an unauthorized reseller suspected of distributing counterfeit
6 Second Ab units. The Court subsequently granted a preliminary
injunction against Drop Ship Solutions pursuant to a stipulation
between the parties. On July 26, 2004 a temporary restraining order
was granted and served upon Salco International and its owner Sal
Maggio at their offices in Clearwater, Florida. On September 24,
2004, the parties agreed to a preliminary injunction that was granted
by the Court. Legal proceedings against both companies are ongoing,
including Savvier's claims for monetary damages.
"Savvier
is committed to aggressively locating and shutting down any distributors
or re-sellers of counterfeit 6 Second Ab products. Savvier is proud
of the high product quality of all of their products and do not
want inferior quality products being sold to customers because in
the end it's the customer that is being ripped off by the counterfeiters"
said Jeffrey Tuller, President of Savvier. Savvier has an extensive
system in place to identify and stop counterfeit products from being
sold. Mr. Tuller also commented that "Little do these people
know that we have eyes everywhere. We are currently prosecuting
cases where we have digital images of street vendors and license
plates where we track the sources back through the supply chain
throughout the U.S. and China and shut them down with the help of
private investigators skilled in this type of work.
"The primary
culprits attempt to sell on the Internet or as street vendors or
at swap meets. If a customer is unsure of whether products being
sold on the internet are legitimate, a safe place to shop is the
official website for 6 Second Abs at www.6secondabs.com or an authorized
retail location" said Stuart Turner, Product Manager at Savvier.
Savvier has
noted that the counterfeit products are clearly of inferior quality
and contain DVD's that simply do not work. "It is shocking
to me that despite the risks to both themselves and to the consumers
who buy product, companies continue to try to pass off counterfeit
product," said Joseph P. Costa, of Costa, Abrams & Coate
LLP, Savvier's attorneys. "The lawsuits that we have brought
and that we will continue to bring will require these resellers
to shoulder some of the responsibility for the potential harm they've
brought to consumers and honest resellers of Savvier product."
Savvier has
noticed several identifying marks on the counterfeit 6 Second Abs
units that can help distinguish them from the authentic 6 Second
Abs:
• Prices
that are well below the televised advertised price of $59.90. These
may indicate counterfeit product which is of inferior quality.
• Instructional DVD's Rock Hard Abs and Total Body Workout
that simply
don't work.
• Interchangeable resistance bands that are of inferior quality
and finish.
As part of its
efforts to stop the distribution of counterfeit product, Savvier
has received commitments of cooperation from Drop Ship Solutions
and Salco International that they will provide the identities of
those customers who received counterfeit product so that authentic
replacement product can be provided to them at the expense of the
infringing distributor. "This is part of
the goal here, to make sure that purchasers of Savvier product receive
product of only the highest quality", said Jeffrey Tuller,
Savvier's President.
Savvier was
founded in 2002 and is an industry leader in direct response marketing.
Its first two long-form infomercials, 6 Second Abs and Bodyflex,
were certified #1 hits on both the Jordan Whitney and IMS charts.
Savvier is a
registered trademark of Savvier, LP.
About Savvier
Formed in 2002, Savvier has quickly become one of the leading infomercial
companies in the industry with expertise in product development,
manufacturing, marketing and domestic / international distribution.
Savvier has the direct response expertise and financial resources
to bring concepts to the marketplace successfully. Savvier develops
products in all the major direct response categories, the company
specializes in fitness, kitchen, housewares and personal care. For
more information visit http://www.savvier.com.
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