Shark attack on Dyson to end up in court
MOST companies dread being told their products suck. But for rival vacuum cleaner companies Dyson and SharkNinja it is the highest of compliments – and they are set to defend their suction power in a court battle.
US firm SharkNinja has doubled its market share in the UK in the past year. It now sells one in five upright vacuum cleaners in Britain.
The company tried to lure customers from Dyson with an advertising campaign that claimed two of Shark’s cordless vacuum cleaners have better suction power than Dyson’s bestselling V8 model.
Dyson has now filed a lawsuit saying the claims are ‘misleading’.
However, SharkNinja insists its advertising campaign is fair and did not infringe Dyson’s trademarks. It complains that by resorting to court action Dyson is trying to undermine the advertising watchdog, which usually settles marketing disputes.
Shark’s European boss Matt Broadway, a former Dyson employee, said: ‘The industry is an aggressively competitive market and it is not unusual for this to get litigious. However, we are disappointed Dyson has brought litigation through the courts rather than seeking redress through the Advertising Standards Authority, which is set up to handle exactly this kind of dispute.’
SharkNinja dropped its TV and online ads after Dyson filed the legal claim last September to ‘take the heat out’ of the dispute.
The fierce rivals have previously sued each other in the US.
A Dyson spokesman said: ‘Dyson takes action to protect ourselves against competitors’ misleading claims.’