Crocs loses patent battle

Shoe manufacturer Crocs has lost a patent court case revolving around the shoe’s design. According to the American Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO), another company has had a similar design for much longer.

Dwindling turnover

Crocs and USA Dawgs have been locked in a court case for five years already, discussing the shape of shoes. Crocs claimed that Dawgs and several other companies breached its patent, a claim USPTO now dismisses. The Office says other companies had a similar design to Crocs at least one year prior to its own inception, which means it cannot be the sole owner of the design.

Courts had reached the same conclusion twice before, but Crocs can now no longer appeal to the USPTO. However, the company still has other ways to appeal this decision, something it will definitely do, it has announedc.

The company’s performance is also increasingly bad: over the next two years, the American company will shut down 160 stores. Its turnover also dropped another 3.3 % in the past quarter, down to 313 million dollars (265 million euro), on top of a 10 % turnover drop in the first quarter.