AFTER rounds of trials and appeals, the famous TV program, “If You Are the One,” produced by Jiangsu Satellite TV, might have another chance to get back on the air as its appeal was recently accepted by the Guangdong Higher People’s Court.

    The higher court decided to hear the case and suspend the original verdict, which was made by Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court earlier this year during the retrial period.

    The higher court thought that the intermediate court had made legal mistakes in coming to its verdict, and thus decided on a retrial.

    In January this year, Jiangsu Satellite TV was ruled to have infringed the property rights of a Wenzhou businessman in Shenzhen by using “If You Are the One” as the name of the well-known speed-dating TV show.

    The Wenzhou resident, named Jin Ahuan, had applied to trademark “Feichengwurao” (“If You Are the One” in Chinese) in February 2009 and obtained the trademark in September the next year. Jin used the name for his matchmaking agency.

    Jiangsu Satellite TV aired the show after Jin has legally acquired the right to use the name. Jin took the show to court along with its partner, zhenai.com, a Shenzhen-based relationship website, in 2013.

    Jin lost the first hearing at Nanshan District People’s Court, as the judge believed that the TV show and Jin’s brick-and-mortar dating service were significantly different.

    On appeal, Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court ruled in favor of Jin in December 2015, saying that Jiangsu TV should stop using the name “If You Are the One.”

    The intermediate court said that Jin had the exclusive right to use the name under the category of “dating services and matchmaking agencies.”

    The court considered the purpose of the show in determining whether the two services were similar when making the judgment.

    In addition, Jiangsu TV Station has made large profits on advertisements aired during the broadcast of the dating show “If You Are the One,” the court ruled.

    The court said that it had proved that the TV station used the name for commercial purposes, and was therefore committing copyright infringement.

    The retrial will take place at the higher court in Guangzhou today. (Zhang Qian)