Nieuwe look

GvEA, 26 November 2008, zaak T-435/07, New Look Ltd. Tegen OHIM (Nederlandse vertaling nog niet beschikbaar).

Gemeenschapsmerken. Terechte weigering niet onderscheidend woordmerk NEW LOOK voor kleding e.d. Het is niet meer dan “an advertisement with the sole aim of making a claim about a product or the change that that product can confer on a person’s appearance”.

“23. In the present case, at the very least, a basic understanding of English on the part of the general public, in any event, in the Scandinavian countries, the Netherlands and Finland must be regarded as a well-known fact. Therefore, the Board of Appeal was entitled to take the view that the target public in those countries would understand the sign applied for and would not see it as a badge of a particular trade origin for the goods and services at issue, but as an advertisement with the sole aim of making a claim about a product or the change that that product can confer on a person’s appearance. Consequently, the Board of Appeal did not err in finding that the sign applied for is devoid of any inherent distinctive character in those countries.”

Lees het arrest hier.