Judgment of the General Court (Third Chamber) of 14 January 2015 — Melt Water v OHIM (Shape of a transparent cylindrical bottle)
(Case T‑70/14)
Community trade mark — Application for a three-dimensional Community trade mark — Shape of a transparent cylindrical bottle — Absolute grounds for refusal — Lack of distinctive character — Article 7(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 207/2009
1. Community trade mark — Appeals procedure — Action before the EU judicature — Jurisdiction of the General Court — Direction issued to the Office — Exclusion (Council Regulation No 207/2009, Art. 65(6)) (see para. 11)
2. Community trade mark — Definition and acquisition of the Community trade mark — Absolute grounds for refusal — Marks devoid of any distinctive character — Three-dimensional trade marks consisting of the shape of the product itself — Distinctive character — Criteria for assessment (Council Regulation No 207/2009, Art. 7(1)(b)) (see paras 17-23)
3. Community trade mark — Definition and acquisition of the Community trade mark — Absolute grounds for refusal — Marks devoid of any distinctive character — Three-dimensional trade marks consisting of the shape of the product itself — Shape of a transparent cylindrical bottle (Council Regulation No 207/2009, Art. 7(1)(b)) (see paras 25, 28, 31, 33, 34, 37)
4. Community trade mark — Decisions of the Office — Principle of equal treatment — Principle of sound administration — OHIM’s previous decision-making practice (see para. 39)
5. Community trade mark — Definition and acquisition of the Community trade mark — Assessment of the registrability of a sign — EU rules only taken into account — Earlier registration of the mark in certain Member States or third countries — Decisions not binding EU bodies (Council Regulation No 207/2009) (see paras 43, 44)
Re:
| ACTION brought against the decision of the Fifth Board of Appeal of OHIM of 26 November 2013 (Case R 481/2013-5), concerning an application for registration of a three-dimensional sign comprising the shape of a transparent cylindrical bottle as a Community trade mark. |
Operative part
The Court:
2. | | Orders Research and Production Company ‘Melt Water’ UAB to pay the costs. |