The General Court of the European Union has ruled in case Case T‑239/19 Vinos de Arganza v Nordbrand Nordhausen GmbH. It concerns an attempt for registration of the following combined EU trademark for class 33 – wine:
Against this application, an opposition was filed based on an earlier German trademark BELCANTO for class 33 – Alcoholic beverages.
EUIPO upheld the opposition entirely. According to the Office, the goods for both marks were identical. From a visual point of view, both signs were similar to a low degree. Phonetically they were similar because of their end sounds. Conceptually both trademarks were neutral because they had no meaning for the German-speaking public.
The Court confirmed this decision.
What is interesting here is the fact that although the beginning of the marks has a bigger impact on such comparisons in the case at hand the different letters, in the beginning, weren’t able to overcome the entire possibility for consumer confusion between the signs.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY PLANET 