Distinctiveness of LVMH clasp
Written by Jean Philippe Bresson Wednesday, 18 August 2010 08:29
Just published is a decision issued on April 9, 2010, by the Paris Court of Instance which upheld the registered mark of LVMH for the clasp shown below to be distinctive. For the Court, that shape is not imposed by the function of the articles it applies to. It even can refer to the V letter which is one of the initials of its owner so as to indicate the origin of the products.
The distinctinvess of that mark has already been disputed. In this decision, the Court reiterated its past positive position as to its disctinctiveness. We are uncertain whether the outcome would have been the same before the OHIM given the higher standards applied on the Community level.
French Courts link level of care to doctor prescription
Written by Jean Philippe Bresson Tuesday, 17 August 2010 09:22
In the context of a counterfeiting action involving the marks TRICOR and PRICOR, the Court of First Instance of Paris has first stressed that pharmaceutical products with different therapeutic aims remained identical considering these products have the same nature, same overall purpose, same consumers and same distribution channels. This is perfectly in line with the Community position but French decisions coming by on this point are rare enough to be mentioned.
French threat on Design rights for Ink cartridge?
Written by Jean Philippe Bresson Monday, 16 August 2010 09:36
Just published is a decision issued on April 15, 2010, where the Paris Court of Instance upheld that the registered Designs of ink cartridge hold by SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION be invalidated.
The Court said that such designs lacked novelty and individual character because, when normally used by the public, they are incorporated into a complex product and are no more apparent. As a result, the ornamental function of the design cannot be fulfilled.
This is quite a strict position. If it was to be confirmed in the French practice, no more registration of the appearance of ink cartridge could be sought as design.
Google AdWords: French Supreme Court position after ECJ’s findings
Written by Jean Philippe Bresson Thursday, 12 August 2010 09:00
Following the decision of the ECJ issued on March 23, 2010, the French Supreme Court has ruled on July 13, 2010, in four cases, that Google’s AdWords system did not infringe the trademarks of plaintiffs Louis Vuitton, CNRRH, GIFAM and Viaticum by selling them as keywords and displaying advertisements.
The Supreme Court confirmed the ECJ's finding that a trademark owner is entitled to prohibit advertisers from advertising, on the basis of a keyword identical, or similar to, a registered trademark, goods or services identical to those for which that mark is registered.
The decisions will make it more difficult for trademarks owners to enforce their rights, as they will have to file suit against any advertiser. The decisions also confirm that Google will be held liable only if it was aware of the illegal character of the data stored and failed to take action. The decisions follow a general trend whereby the courts have found that service providers, such as eBay, were not liable for trademark infringement.
Distinctiveness of bottle surfaces under OHIM standards
Written by Jean Philippe Bresson Tuesday, 03 August 2010 15:20
The General Court has confirmed in cases T-109/08 and T-110/08 that no registration should be granted to trademarks consisting in the specific aspects of wine bottles because they lacked distinctiveness and were not evidenced as having acquired distinctiveness though use.
Spanish company Frexeinet SA had filed for ‘sparkling wines’ in class 33 the trademarks below for the surface of a matte golden color with a frosted effect (case T 109/08) and another trademark application for the surface of a black matt bottle (case T-110/08). The applicant joined to its application a statement indicating that no protection was claimed as to the shapes of the bottles but only in respect of the specific aspects of the surfaces.
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