Q: If a toy design is patented how are there so many different people selling identical products?
I made a crocheted design of the famous reversible octopus that I was hoping to sell but was told I couldn’t because the design is patented. But when I look on Etsy and Amazon, there are plenty of sellers selling products that are identical. How is that legal?
A:
Maybe the patent owner licensed the design to a number of sellers. Or maybe the sellers buy the product from the patent owner. Or maybe the sellers on Etsy ignore the Cease and Desist letters. Of maybe the person who told you about that you could not sell it is wrong.
In any case, if you really want to get to the bottom of this, you'll need to get a patent attorney to take a look at it.
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