RJR Sues E-Cigarette Maker Over Trademark Infringement

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. has taken legal action against SAS Technologies. In the lawsuit, the locally headquartered company alleges the electronic cigarette maker of infringing on its Camel and Winston brands.

According to The Business Journal, SAS Technologies does business as SaveASmoker.com, and promotes and sells flavored liquid nicotine products for use with e-cigarettes. The lawsuit was filed last week in U.S. District Court in North Carolina by Reynolds Innovations Inc., a subsidiary of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co., which is part of Reynolds American Inc.

Reynolds Innovations claims that SaveASmoker.com is selling "E-Liquid" products with names such as "Camell Tobacco" and "Winston" among the different flavors of liquid nicotine products. According to the lawsuit, Reynolds Innovations believes that the use of the Camel and Winston names and images "is likely to cause confusion, mistake, or deception among consumers as to the source, origin, or sponsorship of such products," the news outlet reported.

Reynolds Innovations is seeking to recover damages from the unauthorized use of the Camel and Winston names and images and all of the profits SAS Technologies generated from the products. As of Nov. 5, the flavors targeted by Reynolds Innovation had been removed from SaveASmoker.com.