Intellectual Property: European Courts extend the use of trademarks to goods and services

The European Court of Justice ["ECJ"] ruled in Praktiker Bau-und Heimwerkermärkte [C 418/02] that the company now uses the trademark of its goods to extend to cover the services provided by the company.

A DIY retailer, Praktiker Märkte, applied to the Dutsks Patent und Markenamt [German Patent and Trademark Office] for the registration of the PRAKTIKER trademark for the retail trade of construction, home improvement and gardening supplies - your own department. ' However, the German Patent Office rejected the slogan on the grounds of the "retail trade" concept. It does not represent an independent service with independent economic significance.

Praktiker Märkte filed an appeal with Bundespatentgericht [Federal Patent Court] against the rejection of his application. The company believes that the economic trend of serving the society needs to reassess the retail industry as a service. Consumers' purchase decisions are not only greatly influenced by the availability and price of the products, but also by other aspects, such as the type and type of goods, display, service provided by employees, advertising, image and retail trade related services. Enable retailers to differentiate themselves from competitors. They further argue that the purchase of such services is eligible for service mark protection.

The case was submitted to the European Court of Justice and his conclusion was:

If the service is different from the product that sells the mark, the retail service should be registered as a trademark; and
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  The content of the service provided by the retailer must be specified so that the consumer can specifically understand [1] the content contained in the service [such as "retail transaction" or "retail service" is not clear enough] and 2] which goods or types of service are involved commodity.

Comment: This is a major decision of the trademark owner.

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©RT COOPERS, 2005. This briefing does not provide a comprehensive or complete statement of the law on the issue in question, nor does it provide legal advice. It is only used to highlight general issues. Expert legal advice should always be provided for specific situations.

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