Adidas has failed in an attempt to broaden trademark protection for its three-stripes symbol in the European Union.
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Adidas had tried to establish a wider trademark for “three parallel equidistant stripes of equal width applied to the product in whichever directionâ€.
The German sporting goods company has trademark protection for its slanted three-stripe logo.
The sporting goods industry has seen a rise in trademark and patent disputes as the biggest players try to differentiate their products and justify premium pricing.
High-profile cases have included Adidas clashing with Skechers USA and Nike taking on Puma.
The General Court of the European Union said it had upheld a 2016 decision of the European Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) to annul a previous acceptance of the trademark, which Adidas registered in 2014 for clothing, footwear and headgear.
That trademark was challenged by Belgium’s Shoe Branding Europe after a decade-long dispute with Adidas.
The same EU court had rendered Shoe Branding’s own two-stripe trademark invalid last year, saying the stripes were too similar to those of Adidas.
Shoe Branding bought Patrick, which was founded in 1892 and says it is the oldest sports brand in Europe, in 2008. Patrick features two stripes on its shoes and clothing, although they slope in the opposite direction to those on Adidas shoes.
Adidas needed to show that three parallel stripes, regardless of direction on the product, had acquired a “distinctive character†throughout the EU based on its use so that consumers inherently knew a product was from Adidas and could distinguish it from products of another company.
The court said the mark was not a pattern but an “ordinary figurative mark†and it was not relevant to take into account specific uses involving colors.
Adidas, which can still appeal to the European Court of Justice, said in a statement the ruling did not impact other protected uses of the trademark in Europe.
“Whilst we are disappointed with the decision, we are further evaluating it and are welcoming the useful guidance that the court will give us for protecting our 3-stripe mark applied to our products in whichever direction in the future,†it said. ■