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Maytag Corp. (Newton, IA, U.S.), the third-largest appliance manufacturer in the United States, has sued LG Electronics Inc., claiming the company infringed on Maytag's patents for an airflow system and console panel used in clothes washers and dryers.
Whirlpool Corp., the largest U.S. appliance maker, also filed a patent-infringement lawsuit against LG Electronics in August, after the South Korean company introduced a new line of washing machines.
The Maytag lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Des Moines, IA, U.S., asks a federal judge to block LG Electronics from selling the appliances. It also seeks cash compensation.
The companies are fighting about the growing U.S. market for washing machines. Shipments of washers in the U.S. increased 4.6 percent and dryers rose 5.2 percent through September compared with the same period last year, the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers said.
Laundry appliance sales are rising faster than all home appliances, which increased 2.6 percent this year.
Maytag, which has its headquarters in Newton, IA, U.S. makes appliances under the Maytag, Amana, Jenn-Air, Magic Chef and Admiral brands, as well as Hoover vacuums.
LG Electronics is the biggest unit by sales of LG Group. In July, the company said home appliance sales rose 7 percent, driven by rising sales of washing machines and refrigerators. (Bloomberg News)
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