Miley Cyrus secures rights over her name, PepsiCo faces a trademark lawsuit over its new \u2018Mountain Dew Rise\u2019 beverage, and more brought to you by the Trademark Attorneys at BananaIP (BIP) Counsel<\/p>\n
The Delhi High Court, in a recent decision, held that the mark \u2018Goodyear\u2019, which has been used by Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company (Goodyear Co.) in India since the year 1920 in relation to tyres and inner tubes, is a prima facie well-known mark. Goodyear Co. filed the present suit against an individual, Deva Nand Sukhia, who had been using the \u2018Goodyear\u2019 mark in relation with brake oil, grease, gear oil, and related goods. The Delhi High Court noted that the mark \u2018Goodyear\u2019 was registered in Goodyear Co.\u2019s name since 1943, and also observed that Goodyear Co. was operating several facilities in 21 countries across the world. These facts coupled with the company\u2019s extensive turnover ($50 billion between 2014-2018) evidenced the extensive goodwill and reputation attached to the mark \u2018Goodyear\u2019. The Court, therefore, held that the \u2018Goodyear\u2019 mark is a prima facie well-known mark, and further issued an interim injunction restraining Deva Nand from using the mark \u2018Goodyear\u2019, or any other similar mark. Internationally renowned pop-star Miley Cyrus, has recently secured a favourable decision from the Court of Justice of the European Union (\u201cCJEU\u201d), allowing her to use the mark \u2018MILEY CYRUS\u2019, in connection with a variety of goods including video discs, mobile phone cases, board games, and calendars, among other goods. The American singer\u2019s company, Smiley Miley, had applied for the registration of her name as a trademark in 2014, which was opposed by a British Virgin Island-based company, Cyrus Trademarks Ltd., the proprietor of the mark \u2018CYRUS\u2019 since 2010. The opposition was initially allowed by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (\u201cEUIPO\u201d), on the ground of likelihood of confusion between the marks. However, on appeal, the CJEU overturned the EUIPO\u2019s decision, holding that the trademark \u2018MILEY CYRUS\u2019 has a clear semantic relation with, and refers to, a public figure of international reputation, who is \u201cknown by most well-informed, reasonably observant and circumspect persons\u2026\u201d<\/em>.<\/p>\n Rise Brewing, a manufacturer of ready-to-drink, cold-brew coffee, has instituted a suit against beverage conglomerate PepsiCo, before the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, alleging infringement of its \u2018RISE\u2019 trademarks. As per Rise Brewing\u2019s complaint, PepsiCo had introduced its own canned coffee drink, \u2018Mountain Dew Rise\u2019 in March 2021, which incorporates Rise Brewing\u2019s trademarked term \u2018RISE\u2019 in the brand name. The complaint further alleges that PepsiCo\u2019s usage of the \u2018Rise\u2019 trademark in its branding creates a \u2018reverse confusion\u2019, whereby a larger entity adopts the trademark of a relatively smaller one, and then floods the market with the infringing goods through its superior commercial resources, and confuses consumers into thinking the two goods are related, or have a common origin.<\/p>\n With Warner Bros\u2019 much awaited film \u2018Space Jam: A New Legacy\u2019 set to release soon, clothing giant Forever21 has launched a new line of licensed Space Jam apparel and accessories. The new collection pays homage to the 90\u2019s basketball style, and includes apparel for men, women, kids, and juniors, adorned with characters from the Space Jam series, like Bugs Bunny, Lola, and Wile E. Coyote, among a host of others.<\/p>\n Sportswear giant Adidas and toymaker LEGO have once again collaborated, to unveil a new LEGO building block set, in the shape of the iconic Adidas Superstar sneaker.\u00a0 The two companies, who have previously joined hands to release several shoes and apparel ranges, are now entering the toy market with the Adidas Superstar LEGO set. In furtherance of the same collaboration, Adidas will also be releasing a new version of the classic Superstar sneaker, specially designed with a LEGO theme.<\/p>\n An Indian company, Machani Infra Development Corporation Pvt. Ltd. (\u201cMachani Corp.\u201d) has recently been found guilty of attempting to reverse domain name hijack the website www.Machani.com<\/a>. Machani Corp. instituted the dispute under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (\u201cUDRP\u201d) before a Panel of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (\u201cWIPO\u201d), alleging cybersquatting on the part of the owner of www.Machani.com<\/a>. The WIPO Panel, however, noted that the domain owner\u2019s last name was \u2018Machani\u2019 itself, and all the evidence of Machani Corp.\u2019s usage of the trademark \u2018Machani\u2019 was subsequent to the registration of the domain name www.Machani.com<\/a>. Therefore, the Panel rightly held Machani Corp. guilty of attempting reverse domain name hijacking.<\/p>\n The Chedi Putta handloom sari of Tamil Nadu, which is woven with a mixed fabric of artificial silk and cotton, has recently been applied for Geographical Indication (\u201cGI\u201d) tagging. The terms \u2018Chedi\u2019 and \u2018Putta\u2019 literally translate to \u2018plant\u2019 and \u2018border\u2019, as these traditionally woven saris incorporate floral designs along the border, or \u2018pallu\u2019<\/em>, of the sari. The Chedi Putta sari is native to parts of the Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu, and the application for GI tagging has been submitted on behalf of five weavers\u2019 associations in the same region. The GI tagging would significantly boost the economic situation of the Chedi Putta sari weavers, who have faced significant financial losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n Authored and compiled by Uma T.S, Shreya Chaddha & Varun Gopalakrishnan<\/strong> The Trademark News Bulletin is brought to you by the Trademark\/Copyright, IP Transactional Strategy Divisions of BananaIP Counsels, a Top IP Firm in India. Led by\u00a0<\/em>Sanjeeth Hegde<\/em><\/a>, BIP\u2019s trademark attorneys are among the leading experts in the field. If you have any questions, or need any clarifications, please write to\u00a0<\/em>contact@bananaip.com<\/em><\/a>\u00a0with the subject: Trademark News.<\/em>
\nCitation: The Goodyear Tire And Rubber Company and Anr. vs Deva Nand Sukhia- CS(COMM) 182\/2021<\/em><\/p>\nINTERNATIONAL TRADEMARK UPDATES<\/h2>\n
Miley Cyrus Secures European Trademark Victory<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Cold-Brew Coffee Maker Sues PepsiCo<\/strong><\/h3>\n
BRAND LICENSING UPDATES<\/h2>\n
Forever21 Launches \u2018Space Jam\u2019 Collection<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Adidas and Lego Release Buildable Sneaker<\/strong><\/h3>\n
DOMAIN NAME DISPUTE UPDATES<\/h2>\n
Indian Company Attempts to Hijack Common Surname Domain <\/strong><\/h3>\n
GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION UPDATES<\/h2>\n
Chedi Putta Sari On Track for GI Tagging<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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