Fast-fashion retailer Shein accused rival Temu at London’s High Court on Monday of carrying out copyright infringement “on an industrial scale” by using thousands of Shein product images, in a case that could shape how online marketplaces are held responsible for third-party sellers.
According to Reuters reporting of the case, Shein alleged Temu used photographs of Shein-branded clothing to advertise copied products on its platform in order to gain an unfair commercial advantage. Benet Brandreth, representing Shein, told the court: “This was an attempt to steal a march on an existing participant in the market and Temu has sought to obtain, we say, an unfair advantage.”
The dispute centres on whether Temu can be treated as a neutral intermediary for third-party merchants or bears legal responsibility for listings hosted on its marketplace. Shein argued that Temu actively enabled sellers to exploit copyrighted material and sought an order requiring the removal of allegedly infringing images.
Brandreth told the court that Temu had abandoned part of its defence relating to nearly 2,300 photographs taken by Shein employees, comparing the move to “the defendant waiting to see if the witnesses will turn up, only to plead guilty”, according to Reuters. He added in written submissions cited by the Financial Times that “the scale of infringement is astonishing”.
Temu denied the allegations and argued that Shein’s lawsuit was intended to suppress competition rather than protect intellectual property rights. Charlotte May, representing Temu, told the court the claim had “nothing at all to do with the protection of any intellectual creativity in photographs, and everything to do with an attempt [by Shein] to stifle legitimate competition”.
Temu also claimed Shein lacked proper ownership documentation for some photographs and accused the company of relying on backdated or fabricated contracts with photographers and suppliers. Shein rejected those allegations, saying most of the disputed images were produced by its own employees and arguing that Temu had misunderstood Chinese business practices.
Reuters reported that Temu has filed a counterclaim seeking damages after removing thousands of product listings following an injunction obtained by Shein. Temu has separately accused Shein of using exclusive supplier agreements that breach competition law, with that part of the dispute scheduled for trial next year.
The two-week case before Mrs Justice Bacon is the latest stage in a wider legal conflict between the companies, which have filed lawsuits against each other in the US as regulators increase scrutiny of low-cost cross-border ecommerce platforms.