The Region - News from March 9, 1986

A picture may be worth a thousand words, but the National Geographic Society feels that pictures and accompanying text that have been allegedly lifted from the National Geographic magazine to produce bootleg copies in Chinese should be worth more. The society is seeking $2 million in punitive damages in a suit filed in Los Angeles federal court against Taiwanese publisher Ming-ta Chen, alleging that his Chinese-language publication, All World Geographic, contains reproductions of photographs from National Geographic and Chinese translations of its articles. National Geographic’s lawyers asked U.S. District Judge Dickran Tevrizian Jr. to halt further imports of the magazine and to order copies in this country impounded. Tevrizian authorized raids on three stores in Monterey Park where U.S. marshals impounded more than 80 copies of the magazine for alleged violations of copyright laws, a spokesman for the society said.