Here's a statement from Zombie Lab:

We have no idea how a person reuse the concept from the brain storming in Zombie Lab team meeting.

We must DECLARE that BFS just purchased the mold but do not purchase the visual asset (copy right) of Zombie Lab. We have passed to layer to follow. (They blocked us in their pages)

As the mold is a actual object produced by Zombie Lab. The copy right is born to be owned by Zombie Lab at that time. So far, we have paid the service fee to BFS initially for 3D file. However, we are not doing game or animation project, so 3D file is not an asset to support the copy right of mold even we did not pay for the service however, we did it.

As a mold purchasing (not producing), it only means the company maybe want to stop the production of original producer or with other intentions. It dose not means they have copy right to use the mold to produce a higher similar parts. As it is a module component mold.

We have explained many times to those who so call designer...but they do not know the law and business, so we will pass to the lawyer to explain to them. Sadly.

BFS dose not know we have tuned all data of Zombie Lab product. So they are mislead by the sneaky guy. The sneaky guy boost up the production cost and some moral hazard issue exiting in Zombie Lab project. He did not pay for the additional cost then he try to sell all shares to the partner to escape from the responsibility as a shareholder or founder. The company we are registered in Hong Kong with independent auditing request. So we are bearing the accurately report in obligation then he ran away.

As a so call designer, he abandon his company and go to other company to reuse the concept, so funny.

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Yikes. I feel like I got the gist of it but.... that's a horrible translation.

If I got it right....they are contending that Boss Fight bought the physical molds but don't own the designs..so if Bossfight moves forward they are essentially bootlegging the Zombie Lab designs and are open to legal action. But someone has misled Bossfight into thinking they own the designs but that is incorrect.

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As far as I can tell that's the truth. But, if BFS makes enough design changes then they wouldn't be violating the copyright.

I don’t want this to sound mean - just practical. But based on apparent limited English communication skills, I don’t like their chances if the contracts also were in English.

From what I’ve seen, I think the ZL guy knows he’s got a problem here legally.

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BFS aren’t new to this. They are industry veterans who know how things work. I can’t imagine them doing something like investing 10’s of thousands of dollars in molds to not be able to legally use them. And the idea that they would buy the molds just to keep Zombie Lab from continuing to make product... that’s just laughable. Even if BFS had that kind of capital to invest in squatting on molds (and they don’t) they don’t come across as the kind of people who would do it.

This sounds to me like the ZL guy here got bought out or sold out and is regretting whatever deal they made.

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Just because you buy the equipment used to make a thing doesn't mean you have the legal right to produce the thing. For example the right to reproduce a Beatle's album only comes from buying the license to the album not from buying the whatever was used to produce the records back in the day.

I don't think the intellectual property rights come with the molds. Because the design is intellectual property. You legally are not allowed to find a design on deviant art and make a toy that resembles it's unique properties.

On the other hand, there's *nothing* unique about the ZL character designs in any way, shape, or form. Half of the line is bog-standard civilians while the other half is bog-standard civilians with rotten flesh and injuries. I'm not sure either of those are copyrightable- esp in China where copyright laws are looser than a West Virginian's cousin on Prom Night. All BFS are for sure disallowed from doing is duping out anything on the ZL packaging, imho.

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That's like arguing that I can just make copies of some Joe molds and manufacture them because "they're just military uniforms on humans."

They can't claim they own the sole right to "zombies" but they can claim the sole right to THOSE zombies--which is design and molding.

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A ) having a copyright to textual materials is far different from having a trademark to a specific design, which I've not heard from ZL.
B ) The only Joe that's ever been in a 'military uniform' was GungHo in his USMC Dress Uniform, afaik; so no that's not really a comparable issue.
B2 ) isn't this exactly what the Black Major does anyway?
C ) I'm kinda thinking that since there's a ginormous industry based around stealing Hasbro/Takara Transformer design that *nothing* happens to that Chinese trademark law is a non-starter to get the issue clarified. The only thing that would prevent BFS from using the molds is if ZL literally goes and takes the molds away by hand, imho.

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