A jury ruled that a reading glass maker should pay $5.6 million to a competitor for copying its store displays.
Magnivision Inc., which obtained four patents on a display rack system for displaying glasses at retail outlets, accused VSI International of copying its system from 1991 to 1998.Magnivision said sales at its store locations more than doubled after it added the new display system.It said VSI's sales rose 44 percent after it copied the Magnivision display.
VSI attorney Donald Rupert said he was disappointed by the verdict and plans to ask that the award be reduced.
The jury was only asked to decide damages. Another jury decided in 1997 that VSI had copied the displays.