CITY STADE: degeneration of the trademark for inactivity
[15/04/2024]
In its judgment of 7 February 2024, the General Court of the European Union clarified the conditions (Article 58(1)(b) of Regulation (EU) 2017/1001) under which a trademark may be revoked for degeneration.
In this case, the trademark, CITY STADE registered in 2013 to designate "Buildings, transportable, of metal, namely buildings for use in sports” was subject to revocation in 2021, on the grounds that it had become the common name for this type of building.
The EUIPO's Board of Appeal annulled this decision on the grounds that the degeneration was not attributable to the trademark owner.
The General Court of the European Union held that the fact that the contested trademark had become the common name in the trade for the goods in respect of which it had been registered was due both to the activity and to the inactivity of its owner.
This decision reminds that for a trademark to be revoked for degeneration, the trademark owner must have contributed to the degeneration through its action or inaction.
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