Roof rack controversy. Gobi Vs Whitson

[MillerPKA]

Miller your only defending them because they give you free racks(or hugely discounted). 80% of us here are defending WM because he is a hardworking individual, and none of us are getting anything out of it from him, either past, present or future... So forgive us if we don't put very much weight on your thoughts on this subject

The personal response of the defendant as well as the case has clearly been disclosed, as well as the wording of Gobi's Patent? To now push personal trajections, is this due to the fact Miller you wouldn't want to be affiliated with such company if it is rubbing this community in such a wrong way? Be a shame to have to get rid of that bling on your roof. The reality is I don't care if you have a gobi thats fine. But to simply stick up for this business practice is offputting.


It is not about money, it is about horrible business practice and not truly accepting a product better than their own was produced. It is the fact that several other business owners, entrepreneurs, and even rocket scientist have pointed out Gobis flaws in the matter. This is a childish way to try and stomp out competition on grasping at straws and making claims of an infringement of a product that in no way are similar.

I choose my sponsors, not the other way around. I work with companies I can get behind personally. I have never felt pressure to unwillingly support something and am not starting now. I'm jumping in on this because of the overwhelming bandwagon of misplaced hate.

MillerPKA,

CoB has indicated they did try to get this thread shut down. Not much to debate here unless we are questioning his version of events.

Gobi can post any time, even as themselves.

DiscountTire posts directly to the forum all the time. It really isn't that hard.

Also, I don't know how you can believe they are rightly protecting their brand. At first glance these racks are not similar enough to win in court but the company does have lots of money and lawyers.

I'm surprised at the defense of Gobi and the quasi attack on WMW.



I mean dude.... It reads as if you are implying that WMW does not report every sale, basically that he is a tax cheat. That is just how I read your comment.

AND I don't even like roof racks that much. The only one I did like was WMW but not enough to shell out that kind of $$$.




I would just advise that anyone leaving comments for Gobi be careful what they say. With that said, lawsuits when filed in the United States are public and anyone has a right to know about the existence of said lawsuit. If Gobi wasn't prepared to talk about their lawsuit on social media they should have never filed it in the first place. We can agree that there was no gag order, yes? Ok so not much to talk about here. It's a public lawsuit that affects more parties than just Gobi, WMW and not a private affair.

I won't get into it but yeah I am debating that. Gobi never asked to have the thread shut down, only that they are having a press release in the coming days and would like to share it. You can read it how you want but the point of my example was that people are damning Gobi because it's established business whereas Whitson is just a guy. That is a smack in the face to anyone who has grown into a business. So because Gobi doesn't post here and isn't as intimate in the community, they are all of a sudden this big evil company in everyone's eyes.

Put the shoe on the other foot. If it were Whitson with the patent and a company was making similar racks, would everyone be standing up for the company saying they can make whatever they want? What I'm saying is Gobi is made up of real passionate people trying to make a living themselves. It's not fair to marginalize that fact because you're more intimate with one of those involved. People are going to do what they want though.

 

[wadle5]

Seems kind of shady they have locked their Facebook page and deleted all comments. Requesting public forums to delete threads. Nothing like covering up your tracks I guess.

 

[HOJeepster]

All this does is hurt us, the end consumer. Now we have less choices, leaving the more expensive option. When Perkins made their roof rack, where was Gobi then?

 

[BrianSD_42]

Some of you may be aware, others perhaps not ... There aew major issues with patent law right now in the US and it is easy for companies with cash reserves to threaten or actually destroy legitimate and innocent companies through litigation.

Here are some references for those who'd like to learn more about this.

http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/article...icas-patent-problem-means-going-beyond-trolls

6 TED Talks about problems with patents | TED Blog

 

[cashmoney]

[MENTION=2]Thai[/MENTION] and [MENTION=8329]MillerPKA[/MENTION], y'all should quit while you're ahead. There's no place for logic on the internet where mob mentality reigns supreme.

 

[hearno]

I hope this thread is still here when I get off tonight so I can read the whole thing. It has gotten very interesting.

 

[BrianSD_42]

[MENTION=2]Thai[/MENTION] and [MENTION=8329]MillerPKA[/MENTION], y'all should quit while you're ahead. There's no place for logic on the internet where mob mentality reigns supreme.

Actually I'd say for the most part the feedback has been quite civil. Am I missing something?

 

[cashmoney]

Didn't say it hadn't been civil. Just said the mob has it's mind made up.

 

[wadle5]

Didn't say it hadn't been civil. Just said the mob has it's mind made up.

Aren't mob and civil kind of opposites?!

 

[Doc2012]

I'm thinking the the same would be true, IF Josh was a big company and did the same thing, to say, Demello.

People would be reacting the same way.

The simple fact is, it SEEMS as though Douchi is trying to create a monopoly on roof racks.

Which begs the question, are they hurting that bad for money?

 

[the great him]

Aren't mob and civil kind of opposites?!

What are you talking about... Haven't you seen the news on Ferguson... That place is so respectful and organized come on mobs are always polite and understanding.

 

[cashmoney]

Either way, this group (happy now?) has already made up it's mind and no logic or reasoning will change it.

 

[wadle5]

Either way, this group (happy now?) has already made up it's mind and no logic or reasoning will change it.

Maybe they have made up their minds due to the logic and reasoning that was presented. Again just because you diasgree does not make us at fault or a mob?

 

[wadle5]

What are you talking about... Haven't you seen the news on Ferguson... That place is so respectful and organized come one mobs are always polite and understanding.

And I actually debated making a Ferguson comment so thanks for that haha.

 

[lipek]

IBTL [emoji12]

 

[URBAN ASSAULT]

Mods;
In addition to the "Like" clicky, can we also add a "Throat Punch" clicky?
:boxing:

 

[doubleroses]

Mods;
In addition to the "Like" clicky, can we also add a "Throat Punch" clicky?
:boxing:

I second this! Throat Punch FTW!

 

[theliman]

All of the armchair business majors and patent attorneys have come out of the woodwork and fed into this mob mentality.

...but unfortunately the uneducated and misinformed have as loud of a voice as that of reason, if not louder.

...you've taken it upon yourself to deem an independent fabricator more human than a company? ... Just because they don't have accounts here doesn't mean they are unworthy of your empathy.

...just because your view is limited to that of a consumer doesn't make you right - it makes you ignorant.

You are making a LOT of condescending assumptions about why people feel the way they do about this.

Either way, this group (happy now?) has already made up it's mind and no logic or reasoning will change it.

I have a lot of information, enough to know that I do not support Gobi in this dispute.

What do I have? A picture of a Gobi rack. A picture of a WMW rack. I have the lawsuit. I have Gobi's patent.

It does not matter if some of us are acting like "armchair patent lawyers" - the legal system is so imperfect that Gobi may in fact have a chance- I wouldn't know, I'm not an IP lawyer (but I do know patent law is extremely complex!).

The legitimacy of their lawsuit, from a legal standpoint, means nothing to me as the system is faulty. What grinds my gears is the relief they're trying to claim and on what basis. If they wanted to eliminate the competition, why not insist WMW stop production prior to filing suit? In this light, the only thing I would anticipate changing my view at all on this would be if they had sent some kind of warning. We may have been misinformed on that. However, the merits of their suit and the shadiness of this strategy remain unaffected by that information.

I work in healthcare and see amazing and highly competent people sued all the time. It's beyond frustrating. These are different types of law, to be sure, but point remains that the incentives built in to our system make it easy to take advantage of if you have the resources.

Please, offer me some logic and reasoning. My dense lemming mind may only let me follow the crowd, but I'll try to process it. To save you from typing unnecessarily in your counterpoints, here are some things I don't believe:

Companies are inherently bad.
The hardworking "every" man is good.
Forum members are all good people.
Profit is bad.
Maximizing profit is bad.
Stealing unique ideas is good.

As new information comes to light I will be happy to adjust my opinion (not that it really matters what I think!). I'm not sure what else there is to learn, but I will keep following!

 

[hearno]

Not sure if anyone read the suit but if you look at the bottom, Gobi has requested a jury trial. Ummmmm, if this thread is any indicator of what lies ahead, Gobi is in trouble.

 

[Antman]

You are making a LOT of condescending assumptions about why people feel the way they do about this.



I have a lot of information, enough to know that I do not support Gobi in this dispute.

What do I have? A picture of a Gobi rack. A picture of a WMW rack. I have the lawsuit. I have Gobi's patent.

It does not matter if some of us are acting like "armchair patent lawyers" - the legal system is so imperfect that Gobi may in fact have a chance- I wouldn't know, I'm not an IP lawyer (but I do know patent law is extremely complex!).

The legitimacy of their lawsuit, from a legal standpoint, means nothing to me as the system is faulty. What grinds my gears is the relief they're trying to claim and on what basis. If they wanted to eliminate the competition, why not insist WMW stop production prior to filing suit? In this light, the only thing I would anticipate changing my view at all on this would be if they had sent some kind of warning. We may have been misinformed on that. However, the merits of their suit and the shadiness of this strategy remain unaffected by that information.

I work in healthcare and see amazing and highly competent people sued all the time. It's beyond frustrating. These are different types of law, to be sure, but point remains that the incentives built in to our system make it easy to take advantage of if you have the resources.

Please, offer me some logic and reasoning. My dense lemming mind may only let me follow the crowd, but I'll try to process it. To save you from typing unnecessarily in your counterpoints, here are some things I don't believe:

Companies are inherently bad.
The hardworking "every" man is good.
Forum members are all good people.
Profit is bad.
Maximizing profit is bad.
Stealing unique ideas is good.

As new information comes to light I will be happy to adjust my opinion (not that it really matters what I think!). I'm not sure what else there is to learn, but I will keep following!

Great post and pretty much sums up the way I feel about it as well!