In Germany, an opposition against a German trade mark can be based not only on a trade mark but also on a company name or trade name. In brief, under German law, a company name is the official name or designation of a trader or an undertaking including a catch word, for example “Mc Donald’s…
The first-ever ADR domain name proceedings took place in Slovakia since introduction of the procedure in September 2017. The case involved a dispute over the domain name <vogue.sk>. The complainant – publishing company Les Publications Conde Nast S.A. as the owner of the VOGUE trademarks sought the transfer of the disputed domain name against the…
On the 24th of August, 2017, the Indian Supreme Court handed down an important decision concerning image and personality rights. In fact, it deemed the right to privacy as a fundamental right. It has, however, left some important questions open, in particular, the definition of personality rights giving rise to such right to privacy. Personality…
The Black Friday shopping storm 2017 will kick off soon. However, the Black Friday battle has already begun in Germany. The dispute circles around a German trade mark Black Friday, the owner of the trademark being based in Hong Kong, and its German licensee. In fact, all traces “lead to Vienna”, as media summarized the…
The German Football Association (DFB) owns the international mark “Deutscher Fussball-Bund” (with device) with basic registration in Germany (see image below), claiming protection for a wide variety of merchandise. The registration was notified to the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property in April 2014. The Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property refused to protect the…
The Regional High Court of Frankfurt rendered an interim injunction on appeal, which may have a great impact on the question if and to which extent the owner of an earlier trade mark can take action against the use of a colliding trade name or company name in Germany (judgment of 1 June 2017, 6…
In mid-July the Russian Supreme Court released an interesting decision in the dispute between one of the largest and most recognized non-profit organizations against a copycat suspected of raising money from confused donors all over the country. The judges decided in favor of the plaintiff despite the fact that it did not possess a trademark…
The Federal Administrative Court partially overturned a decision of the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IGE) refusing protection for Apple’s word mark “iMessage” for telecommunication services in class 38. The Administrative Court agreed with the IPO that “iMessage” lacked original distinctiveness for messaging services, because such services were closely linked to the internet,…
Just as with any other violation of law, domain name and trademark squatting will be discouraged or encouraged depending on the efficiency of legal protection given to legitimate IP rights holders. When legal remedies are not available or are not effective, bad faith trademark and domain name applications will increase substantially, prompting legitimate right holders…
In a decision of a Dutch District Court earlier this year[1], the American fast-food chain Wendy’s suffered a loss against a local Dutch snack restaurant, which bears the name WENDY’S. The trademark registration owned by the same snack restaurant blocks the American chain to enter the market. Although this case has similarities with the story…
