THE HAUGE - A Chinese company has sued Dutch retailers Blokker B.V. and Leen Bakker for selling a party tent which might have been copied from the Chinese design.

The court in The Hague had the oral hearing on Wednesday and the judgement will be rendered on Nov 2 if the two parties cannot come to a settlement by themselves within a week.

"These two Dutch companies sell (or sold, since the summer season is now over) a product, namely a (party) tent or sunscreen which Zhejiang Zhengte believes to be too similar to Zhejiang Zhengte's design right and copyright," said Annemieke Kooy from Vriesendorp & Gaade, the Dutch patent firm that represents the Chinese company.

"At the time the legal proceedings were initiated, Zhejiang Zhengte knew only about Blokker and Leen Bakker selling the sunscreens. Zhejiang Zhengte did not know who the producer is, or if the producer is based in the Netherlands," Kooy told Xinhua.

"It cannot be excluded that Zhejiang Zhengte on the one hand and Leen Bakker and Blokker on the other hand enter into a settlement agreement before that date. We will wait for the judgment, and cannot reveal too much about the case before the judgment will be rendered. Should a settlement be agreed upon, there will be no more need for a judgment," she added.

Leen Bakker and Blokker are both companies which sell household products. Both of them are part of Blokker Holding.

The case involves a party tent with a butterfly-like shape that Zhejiang Zhengte sells worldwide. Blokker and Leen Bakker sold an exact copy, bearing the name Le Sud.

Dutch media said the Chinese company wants Blokker and Leen Bakker to stop selling copied products and destroy the stock.