Casetify sued by Dbrand and JerryRigEverything
Dear audience, I have a tale to share. The well-known Casetify brand, valued at one billion dollars, finds itself in a treacherous situation due to recent photos and overwhelming evidence that led to a lawsuit against them for copyright infringement.
Here’s what happened.
Dbrand, along with the brilliant YouTube personality Zack Nelson, known for his channel JerryRigEverything, have reached a breaking point and have decided to take legal action against Casetify for their alleged copyright infringement not more than 48 hours ago.
Casetify stole our products. Now we’re suing them.
— dbrand (@dbrand) November 23, 2023
Here’s how we found out… (1/6)
It all began when random users on X (formerly known as Twitter) tagged Zack Nelson in some tweets, playfully mocking an oversight on Casetify’s part. They pointed out that Casetify had used the same image of the internal components of an iPhone XR on cases for other iPhone models and even Android devices. One user, for instance, shared a photo of a Samsung S23 case from Casetify that featured the iPhone XR internals. It would appear harmless, right? That’s what we thought.
Photo Credit: Twitter feed
Dbrand also joined in on the playful mocking of Casetify. After all, what brand doesn’t take a few jabs at others in good-spirited fun? However, as time passed, both Dbrand and Zack were once again tagged, this time drawing their attention to a new Casetify product line called Inside-out that appeared suspiciously similar to Dbrand’s and Zack’s Teardown lineup, which they collaboratively designed and are selling as partners.
Photo Credit: CNBC Interview with Casetify CEO Wesley NG
I recently watched a video on Zack’s channel titled “I’VE BEEN ROBBED”. I was thoroughly impressed by the positive attitude towards competition from other parties. Zack acknowledged that he clearly does not own the idea of tearing down devices or that he’s the only person admiring the beauty of internal hardware. Instead, he encourages more competition in the field so long as it’s honest.
Photo Credit: CNBC Interview with Casetify CEO Wesley NG
To provide some context, let’s talk about Casetify. In a CNBC interview, Casetify’s CEO Wesley NG discussed the company’s valuation of over 1 billion dollars. Achieving such a milestone is nothing short of impressive, and I applaud them for it. Now, getting back to the main story, if Casetify had purchased these tech products, tore them down, scanned the components, and created their original designs, there would be nothing important to discuss, that however is not the case.
It has been a long-standing tradition for content creators, including YouTubers, filmmakers, and photographers, to embed Easter eggs in their content, giving their audience a glimpse of what’s to come or showcasing their personality tastefully.
Photo Credit: Easter Egg by Zack at JerryRigEverything, adding his saying GLASS IS GLASS AND GLASS BREAKS
Photo Credit: Zack Nelson showcasing Dbrand’s Easter Egg R0807
I’m happy to clarify why Easter Eggs are important in Zack and Dbrand’s design collaboration. Since 2019, they have been working together on concept ideas and design mockups, and they also add Easter Eggs to their final designs. For example, the Teardown lineup has several Easter Eggs that were significant and fun to Zack and Dbrand even if they didn’t mean much to the masses. Dbrand often includes a string of letters and numbers, R0807, on many of their products to represent their robots. Additionally, Zack is well-known for saying, “GLASS IS GLASS AND GLASS BREAKS,” which he frequently uses in his YouTube videos.
Photo Credit: Dbrand
Now, you might be wondering what all the fuss is about regarding the Teardown lineup created by Zack and Dbrand. Well, my beloved readers, the remarkable aspect is that Casetify’s competing lineup Inside-Out, wasn’t unique by any measure. They didn’t buy any products to tear them down, scan them, or even try creating anything. Unfortunately, Casetify’s Inside-out lineup consisted of visiting Dbrand’s website, right-clicked on their Teardown lineup, and shamelessly copying the entire concept, design, and hard work that both Zack and Dbrand poured into their unique product lineup that’s been very popular.
Photo Credit: Dbrand
In the video titled “I’VE BEEN ROBBED”, Zack maintains a very calm demeanor despite being robbed by a billion-dollar company, Casetify. It was interesting to watch the video and find it unforgivable that such a large company would take these shortcuts and steal designs instead of being original and making an honest profit.
Not only did Casetify steal designs from Zack and Dbrand, but they also degraded the quality of the images. It was painfully clear that they also attempted to remove Dbrand’s logo and removed some easter eggs while leaving others whose significance they could not possibly understand. By the sole act of selfishness, Casetify’s prices were even higher than those of Dbrand’s Teardown lineup.
Photo Credit: Dbrand
The extent of Casetify’s actions goes beyond simply taking stolen images from Zack and Dbrand. There was another easter egg that Casetify couldn’t know the meaning of, 11 – 11 – 11, the day Dbrand started as a company. The date copied in Casetify’s Inside-out lineup begs the question: why would Casetify promote this date? The answer is simple – they wouldn’t, unless they had taken Zack and Dbrand’s designs and made absolutely no effort on their part.
Photo Credit: Twitter/X
Consequently, Zack and Dbrand filed a lawsuit against Casetify, and within 24 hours, all products related to the Inside-out lineup disappeared from Casetify’s website. This lawsuit shed a lot of light on Casetify’s overall product lineup, capturing the attention of many. And what do you know? Reports began circulating, linking Casetify to iFixit—a reputable how-to website that guides users to tear downs, repairs, and also sells their own designs and cases. It appears that Casetify also shamelessly copied iFixit’s Insight Case. Their only attempt at originality was to mirror the design of said case that iFixit had spent time and resources making.
Naturally, I will be closely following the developments of this lawsuit. However, we all know that legal disputes are rarely resolved overnight, especially considering Casetify’s headquarters are in Hong Kong.