Focused on highlighting deceptive advertising practices, Epson America has filed a lawsuit against Vava for falsely promoting lumens specifications for the Vava 4K Ultra Short Throw Laser TV.
Filed on April 19 in the United District Court, Central District of Calif., Southern Division, the complaint alleges misrepresentation in the promotion of the Vava 4K Ultra Short Throw Laser TV as a 2,500 or 6,000 lumens product across varying online and in-store retail venues. In addition to creating confusion in the marketplace, according to third-party testing, both claims are wholly inaccurate, with projectors testing well under 2,500 lumens.
The Epson lawsuit comes on the heels of a pandemic-fueled spike in home theater projection adoption across U.S. households as movie theaters across the country closed permanently and people engaged in new at-home viewing technology for streaming, gaming, working, and schooling. From family movie nights in the backyard to online gaming sessions and big-screen sports viewing, families are enjoying content in ways a traditional flat panel TV cannot accommodate.
“Vava’s false lumens claims are misleading to consumers and this misrepresentation of performance creates confusion among people looking at viable home entertainment solutions,” states Mike Isgrig, vice president, consumer sales and marketing, Epson America.
“Ultimately, the industry suffers as a whole when companies misrepresent key performance claims and customers purchase products that don’t meet their viewing expectations.”
Epson advises that both integrators and consumers need to be cautious of misleading metrics listed as ”lux,” “LED lumens” or “lamp brightness” that fail to provide useful information about on-screen light output performance. Measurement for projectors is defined by internationally recognized standards groups, including the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Committee for Display Metrology (ICDM). The ICDM publishes the Information Display Measurement Standards (IDMS) where the methodology for measuring projector color brightness and white brightness separately are fully defined. The ISO standard which defines projector measurement methodology is 21118:2020. When these standards are followed, there is zero ambiguity regarding how projectors are to be properly measured and compared.
Epson asserts that it is focused on ensuring a fair marketplace with accurate information for consumers, including its recent settlement agreement with Philips and Screeneo Innovation in which the parties agreed that all future Philips NeoPix projectors designed, manufactured and sold by Screeneo will use industry standard specifications. In 2020, Epson also filed suit against four projector brands sold on Amazon – Vankyo, WiMiUS, GooDee, and Bomaker – for misleading claims in advertising, and recently reached an agreement with Bomaker.
Additionally, in 2019, Epson reached a settlement with Curtis International Ltd. and Technicolor in its lawsuit alleging the companies falsely advertised the lumens of projectors manufactured and sold under the RCA and ONN (Walmart) brand names. Curtis agreed to advertise its projectors only using the industry standard and to modify its packaging to reflect the accurate lumens ratings. In addition, in 2018 Epson obtained a permanent injunction and damage award for $5 million as a result of its successful litigation against iRulu for falsely advertising lumens ratings.
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