Toyo, Sentury reach agreement in intellectual property case

Cypress, California — Sentury Tires America and Toyo Tire Holdings of Americas Inc. have reached an agreement over the production of Landsail Trailblazer CLV6 tire, which Toyo claimed was in violation of its design patents.

According to Toyo, Sentury has agreed never again to produce the tire or any tire similar to that design.

Also, Sentury has withdrawn the antitrust, business tort and patent suits it filed against Toyo in the US District Court for the Central District of California, Southern Division, Toyo announced on 19 Feb.

Sentury’s suit was dismissed with prejudice, meaning that Sentury is barred from filing any future actions based on the same claims.

At issue was Toyo’s US Design Patent No. 675,150. Toyo filed a complaint before the International Trade Commission in 2013, claiming that 23 tire manufacturers, exporters, importers, distributors and dealers were manufacturing, selling or distributing tires that infringed on the “150” design, as court documents referred to it.

Fifteen of the defendants settled with Toyo, and the ITC issued limited exclusion orders and cease-and-desist orders against the remaining eight in July 2014.

Although Sentury was not among the original defendants, the ITC listed the CLV6 among the tires to be excluded from US distribution.