Recently, in Zhengding, Hebei, a small inn called “Golden Season Hotel” received a summons from the court, being sued by the well-known chain brand “Jinjiang Inn” for infringement and demanded a compensation of 100,000 yuan. The landlady broke down in tears and exclaimed that she was caught off guard.
Zhao, the landlady, mentioned that “Golden Season Hotel” only has a total of 10 rooms, with a daily rate of around sixty to seventy yuan per room. When the hotel was first named, it had passed the review of the relevant regulatory department, successfully obtained a business license, and was operating legally and in compliance.
Since receiving the court summons, Zhao tearfully expressed, “I can’t sleep every day. We can’t come up with 100,000 yuan for compensation even if we sell all our possessions.”
According to reports on August 21 by mainland media, the parent company of Jinjiang Inn, “HanTing Starry Sky (Shanghai) Hotel Management Co., Ltd.,” pointed out in the lawsuit that the names “Jin” and “Jinjiang” are similar in visual effect and can easily confuse consumers, thus constituting trademark infringement.
Zhao believes that although the names differ by only one word, the storefront, decoration style, and scale of operations of the small hotel are completely different from the chain brand Jinjiang Inn. Furthermore, the business license was lawfully approved by the national department, and she never intended to “leverage the traffic of a big brand”, never expecting that legal operation would result in a huge compensation claim.
Legal professionals pointed out that the business registration number belongs to local registration, while trademark exclusive rights are national rights. Even if a business license is obtained, if the name is similar to another registered trademark and can easily cause confusion, it may still constitute infringement.
However, if individual operators can prove no subjective fault and legitimate origin, they can seek to exempt from compensation liability, but they still need to cease the use of relevant names and bear reasonable expenses.
Similar cases have occurred before. In 2024, “Jinji Inn” in Jinshan District, Shanghai, was previously involved in a trademark dispute and was sued by the Jinjiang Inn brand, where they were also required to cease infringement and compensate 100,000 yuan.
Moreover, around early May 2026, there was a franchise hotel in Dalian, Liaoning called “Jinjiang Hotel”, which changed its name to “Quanli Hotel” after terminating its franchise agreement with Huazhu Group (Jinjiang’s parent company).
Many consumers have reflected that hotel names similar to “Golden Season” and “Quanli” in the market can easily mislead people into thinking they found a bargain room, only to realize the reality upon arriving at the hotel. Experts remind small business operators to inquire about the status of trademark registration in advance when naming their businesses to avoid falling into infringement disputes in the future.