On Monday, Danish toymaker LEGO wins another court case against Chinese imitators as it tries to stop imitations of its iconic toy bricks and figures from being sold.
Last year, LEGO won a copyright competition case in China as it tries to establish its presence in the $31 billion toys and games market in China.
In a statement, LEGO's CEO Niels B. Christiansen said, "We believe these decisions are well-founded in the facts and the law, and clearly demonstrate the continued efforts of Chinese authorities to protect intellectual property."
The Guangzhou Yuexiu District Court ruled that four companies had "infringed multiple copyrights of the LEGO Group and conducted acts of unfair competition by producing and distributing LEPIN building sets", Lego said.
The court ordered that the companies immediately ceased "producing, selling, exhibiting or in any way promoting the infringing products."
Furthermore, LEGO will receive around 4.5 million Chinese yuan ($649,735) in damages.
Last year, the Beijing Higher Court passed a ruling that recognized the LEGO logo and name in Chinese, allowing it to act against imitators.
The Chinese market is very important to the Danish toymaker as it is now experiencing slow or declining growth in the Western market. China currently accounts to at least 10 percent of the group's sales.
LEGO, an abbreviation of the Danish "leg godt" meaning "play well", intends to open two additional flagship stores in Shanghai and Beijing, as well as continue its partnership with Tencent.
It is also working with local education departments, state schools and private education providers in China to encourage children to play with LEGO as a way to boost their motor skills, creativity and attention spans.
