<div id="readability-page-1"><div id="news-body">(Yicai) April 17 -- Hisense Group, a Chinese white goods giant, does not violate the intellectual property rights of rival Gree Electric Appliances by using the phrase &#34;genuine copper materials&#34; in air conditioner advertisements.Hisense and four other air-con makers were among the first recipients of the &#34;genuine copper materials&#34; certification jointly launched by the China Consumers Association and the International Copper Association a decade ago, Yang Xiangxi, brand director of Hisense Home Appliances Group's air-con division, told Yicai in response to Gree's accusation. The term was not coined by Gree, he stressed.Late on April 14, Zhu Lei, chief marketing officer of Gree, accused Hisense of IP infringement due to using &#34;genuine copper materials&#34; in advertisements, a phrase Zhu claims the Zhuhai-based company created.Hisense uses copper tubes for condensers, evaporators, and connecting pipes in both indoor and outdoor air-con units, with high-efficiency models adopting double-row copper tubes, Yang noted. On the contrary, most of Gree's exported air-cons use aluminum-wound motors, he said.Zhu acknowledged that Gree uses aluminum materials in air-cons sold overseas because the dry climates in some countries pose no corrosion risks. However, all models sold in China use pure copper as aluminum may fail to meet the 10-year free warranty requirement, he stressed.Experts Say Air-Con Makers Should Replace Copper With AluminumReplacing copper with aluminum in the raw materials used in air conditioners is necessary and feasible, industry experts said to Yicai. Leading manufacturers should not take the lead in stigmatizing the use of aluminum instead of copper, they said.There is public prejudice against aluminum-for-copper technology, but aluminum is not an inferior substitute for copper, Chen Jianmin, dean of Xi'an University of Technology's Reliability Research Institute, told Yicai. With improved corrosion resistance, slower heat exchange performance degradation, and longer service life, the reliability of air-cons using aluminum can be enhanced, he pointed out.Chen urged the industry and the public to abandon stereotypes and view aluminum's strategic value and practical performance rationally and scientifically.&#34;China's air-con industry is accelerating the establishment of a third-party reliability evaluation system for aluminum substitution, launching product certification and publicity with authoritative testing institutions, and promoting revisions to relevant national standards,&#34; Chen said. &#34;Technical indicators, verification methods, and third-party evaluation requirements for aluminum-for-copper will be included in national standards to regulate the tech's implementation at an institutional level.&#34;Leading firms using &#34;genuine copper materials&#34; as a selling point will hinder the widespread adoption and promotion of aluminum-for-copper tech in the air-con sector, He Jinming, vice president of market consultancy AVC.The push for aluminum substitution in China's air-con industry still faces challenges in real-world validation and consumer acceptance, He noted. In addition, the cost advantages of aluminum evaporators remain limited due to low output and high processing fees, He said.China's air-con industry is under pressure from surging copper prices, saturated demand, and fierce competition. The average retail price of split-type air-cons fell nearly 5 percent to CNY3,099 (USD428) last year from the previous year, while retail sales will likely drop 6.9 percent to CNY219.5 billion (USD30.4 billion) this year, according to AVC.Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev</div></div>

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Hisense Group has refuted allegations from Gree Electric Appliances that it infringed on Gree's patents by using the term "genuine copper materials" in its air conditioner advertisements. Hisense claims the term is not exclusive to Gree and that it uses copper in its products, unlike Gree, which uses aluminum in some models. Experts suggest that the air conditioning industry should consider replacing copper with aluminum due to its benefits, despite existing biases against aluminum. The industry faces challenges with rising copper prices and declining sales.

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China's Hisense Refutes Infringing Gree's Patents by Using 'Genuine Copper Materials' in Air-Con Ads