Joop! feeling :-(
September 30, 2009
The European Union Court of First Instance said on Wednesday the exclamation point lacks "distinctive character" that would warrant granting a trademark.
In 2006, Joop! filed two applications for trademarks at the EU's trademark office, OHIM. The first was for a simple exclamation point, the second was an exclamation point inside a rectangle. OHIM rejected the applications, which led Joop! to take the case to court.
While Joop! maintains that the exclamation point with or without the rectangular box is distinct enough for consumers to know it referred to products from the company, the European court disagreed.
"The consumer, including a consumer having a high degree of attention, will not be in a position to infer the origin of the goods designated by relying on a mere exclamation mark," said the court.
The rectangular frame around the exclamation point was not sufficient either, as "placing the mark inside a label-like rectangle is a very common practice in the relevant commercial sector," the court added.
Joop! has the right to appeal the court's decision, but it appears that it may have run out of arguments for the exclamation point - period.
mz/afp/AP/DPA
Editor: Michael Lawton