Police in Beijing Punish Bing Dwen Dwen Resales

Local police in Beijing announced on Tuesday that three individuals had been penalized for illicit sales of the extremely popular Beijing 2022 Bing Dwen Dwen mascots.

Bing Dwen Dwen has gone viral on social media amid the ongoing Beijing Winter Olympic Games. The mascot has already sold out at the official flagship Olympics store. Officials in Beijing said that they found some resellers were charging excessively high prices which has disrupted the normal market order.

Some netizens shared the change of their attitude towards the mascot, “In 2019, when Bing Dwen Dwen stood out from thousands of design schemes, I had no feelings for it. Like many netizens, I thought it looked ugly and simple-minded, but now I think it is so cute.”

Police reminded citizens that official merchandise is currently being produced and sales will continue until June. In response to supply shortages of Bing Dwen Dwen products, organizers have coordinated with manufacturers and licensed toy-making factories to resume work to boost production. Moreover, a special Chinese New Year version of the Bing Dwen Dwen doll will soon hit the market.

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Due to a supply shortage, many netizens have made products in the form of the mascot. Some bloggers on Weibo have published hand-painted tutorials and have attracted many viewers. During the Spring Festival, gourmet experts in Jiangsu Province have made steamed buns with the mascot as a prototype. However, these activities have triggered a discussion on whether these folk self-made products will infringe upon copyrights.