The EU Court gives Inditex a reason in a conflict over the Zara trademark
BRUSSELSUpdated:
The General Court of the European Union (EU) annulled on Thursday a resolution of the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) in which dismissed Inditex's refusal to register the Community trademark "Zara" by the company Zara Tanzania Adventures for travel services.
In 2009, the company Zara Tanzania Adventures asked the Euipo to register the trademark in question for travel and tourism services, travel agency, organization of safaris and vacations, transport of travelers and rental of vehicles and education and training on wild animals.
That same year, Inditex, parent company of Zara, opposed registration based on its previous Community trademarks and in his popularity.
As of 2011, a series of Euipo decisions and resources were made by the companies in relation to the registration of the trademark in question.
In its ruling this Thursday, the General Court pronounces in particular on Inditex's request to partially annul a 2017 Euipo decision in which it authorized Zara Tanzania Adventures to register the brand for travel and tourism services and travel agencies for booking accommodations.
The court, based in Luxembourg, annulled the resolution of EUIPO, which will have to adopt a new resolution. He said that Euipo did not carry out an overall assessment of the risk of undue advantage of distinctiveness or of the reputation of the previous Inditex trademarks, since when examining the allegations presented in this respect by the Spanish group, it did not take into account the intensity of the reputation of said previous marks, nor the degree of their distinctive character.
Consequently, the General Court considered that the grounds on which Euipo based its decision are not sufficient to justify the dismissal of Inditex's opposition to the registration of the trademark by the other company.
