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As December approaches, you may have considered purchasing (for another, or just yourself!) an advent calendar to mark the run-up to Christmas. Traditionally all about revealing seasonal pictures or chocolate, the cosmetics industry has in recent years created its own version that is now a growing market: the beauty advent calendar. These offer an array… Read more »
Are toys which accurately replicate real products equivalent to virtual goods? If so, what do cases about replica toys teach us about how the Courts will assess infringement and the similarity of goods vs their virtual equivalent? In our latest article in this series, we build on the decision of the EU IPO in Opposition… Read more »
McDonald’s sees its ‘BIG MAC’ EU trade mark rights curtailed as the courts continue to crack down on evidence of trade mark use The decision In a decision dated 5 June 2024, the EU’s General Court held that fast food giant McDonald’s had failed to prove genuine use of its BIG MAC trade mark… Read more »
“The clothes we wear say something about who we are. Let’s make sure they’re saying the right thing.” – Colin Firth. The fashion industry, long celebrated for its design innovation, quality and speed to market, is increasingly scrutinised for its environmental impact. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) reports that the fashion industry is responsible… Read more »
What is a Certification Mark? The purpose of a Certification Mark is to tell the consumer that a product or service meets a specific standard set by a regulatory body. This criteria can include a variety of things such as; the goods and services have certain characteristics, or the user has certain qualifications. Some examples… Read more »
In the recent appeals in the case of (1) Lidl Great Britain Limited and (2) Lidl Stiftung & Co KG v (1) Tesco Stores Limited and (2) Tesco plc [2024] EWCA Civ 262, the Court of Appeal has ruled in relation to Tesco’s appeal against the first instance findings that its Clubcard Prices logo infringed… Read more »
In an appeal decision handed down on 26 January 2024 in Iconix Luxembourg Holdings Sarl v (1) Dream Pairs Europe Inc and (2) Top Glory Trading Group Inc [2024] EWCA Civ 29, the Court of Appeal has ruled that when considering post-sale confusion consideration should be given as to how trade marks or potentially infringing… Read more »
The word “Metaverse” has been around for some time. It was coined by Neal Stephenson in the 1992 novel “Snow Crash”, but its wider adoption has been more recent. In 2022, 30 years since the term was first published, “Metaverse” came second-place in the Oxford English Dictionary word of the year. It is fair to… Read more »
Good news for UK businesses, the UK Government has agreed a deal to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) with a well-negotiated exemption. The CPTPP is a free trade agreement between 11 countries, which reduces trade and investment barriers between members by eliminating tariffs and establishing common rules. The Agreement includes… Read more »
In September 2022, I considered some recent developments in the Iceland trade mark saga in this article. Following those developments, the Grand Board of Appeal of the European Union Intellectual Property Office (‘EUIPO’) has dismissed the appeals of Iceland Foods Limited (‘Iceland Foods’) and decided to invalidate its ICELAND trade marks. Background The British chain… Read more »