The Chaozhou News reporter learned that the final verdict of the lawsuit between Jay Chou, JVR Music Co., Ltd., Guangzhou NetEase Computer System Co., Ltd. and other related parties has been announced recently.
The court found that the hot search topics, entries, and promotional reports related to Jay Chou's new album are extremely common, and the behavior of "Tianxia 3" Weibo self funded forwarding lottery and other feedback to players has no profit-making nature, does not violate the principles of integrity and business ethics, and is difficult to make the public associate Jay Chou with the game through endorsement, authorization, etc. Therefore, the accused behavior of "Tianxia 3" does not constitute unfair competition.
According to the judgment, the second instance found that Jay Chou and JVR failed to provide evidence to prove that NetEase and NetEase Thunderfire obtained competitive benefits through the above-mentioned actions, or seized the economic benefits generated by Jay Chou and JVR through album releases and concert performances. From the comments of relevant consumers on platforms such as Weibo, it can be seen that there is no corresponding association or confusion between the products and services provided by NetEase and NetEase Thunderfire and Jay Chou and JVR companies. Jay Chou, as a highly renowned public figure, should have a certain tolerance obligation towards the topics raised on the internet.
According to sources related to "Tianxia 3", the second instance court upheld the original verdict, ruled against Jewell, and dismissed all claims for compensation of 2.05 million yuan.
Weibo hot search
On July 11, 2022, the official Weibo account of Jay Chou Music announced that the online game "Tianxia 3" recently launched a promotion to give away Jay Chou's latest digital album "The Greatest Work" and tickets to Jay Chou's concert. The company emphasized that it has never authorized the game to use Jay Chou's music works, nor has it authorized him to give away Jay Chou's concert tickets. The company's activities are not related to Jay Chou Music! It has nothing to do with Jay Chou! This is not an officially authorized activity! Our company has entrusted lawyers to handle relevant legal issues in accordance with the law. Hereby declare.
The next day, "Tianxia 3" responded, "The activity of giving Jay Chou's digital album is only a daily feedback activity for old users of Tianxia 3. Our company did not use Jay Chou's music works in the game, and Jiewei Company did not authorize us to give away Jay Chou's concert tickets. This activity is indeed unrelated to Jiewei Music and Jielun
On April 17, 2023, the People's Court of Binjiang District, Hangzhou held a public trial of the first instance of the case of plaintiff Jay Chou and JVR Music Co., Ltd. v. defendant NetEase (Hangzhou) Network Co., Ltd., Guangzhou NetEase Computer System Co., Ltd., and Hangzhou NetEase Leihuo Technology Co., Ltd. for unfair competition dispute.
In December 2023, the first instance verdict of the case ruled in favor of the defendant "Tianxia 3", and the court rejected all claims, including a claim of 2.05 million yuan from Jewell. The court determined that the forwarding lottery model is a common promotional method on Weibo, and that player welfare activities such as "Tianxia 3" Weibo's self funded giveaway of Jay Chou's digital album do not have a profit-making nature, making it difficult for the public to associate Jay Chou with being a spokesperson, and did not violate business ethics. Therefore, the defendant was found not to have engaged in unfair competition.