Patents only have effect in the countries where they are actually enforced. Without looking I am pretty sure that China is not a signatory to the Berne Convention (the major international IP treaty that governs patents). If you are manufacturing in a non-Berne country, it's a free for all. If you are in Shanghai, you can buy NBA jerseys, DVDs of movies in the theater, and King clones - all for under $5. Expect a steep drop in quality on all ends.
The guys that clone domestically, like that Reddit clown, are such small fries that it isn't even worth going after them because they won't exist in 6 months. You can expect zero customer service - most of these d*&*heads don't even have a website / location / phone number to call, and they sell $200 mods 2-3 at a time so they are going to make a few Gs a year on people who are too slow to find the reosmods.com website.
When you are a true pimp player hustler OG, you don't mess up your shoes stepping over the poop that comes in your way.
As someone who is actually schooled in IP, it makes my blood boil, but his tact towards the vultures is 100% on point.
Rob's attitude towards the clones is very healthy because doing this full time and retaining quality control is actually a business, and it's hard.
If you doubt this, consider how long it took for Rob to drop the low-ohm kits. He didn't just go out and source random parts. He tried what he got, scrapped the BS, and produced something that would actually work. He did the hard work of R&D so that he saved himself thousands of calls when anything that was half-.....ed didn't work. It's brilliant manufacturing, really. Customers happy. Sell a couple of thousand kits. Upgrade your entire line to stay with current trends.
Innovate.
Stack paper.
Make more cool stuff for your rabid fan base.
Repeat.
