The IP High Court ruled on September 26, 2018 to totally cancel TM Reg. No. 1809362 for the mark “TOP-SIDER” on the ground that use of the registered mark by licensee is likely to cause confusion with goods from a business entity other than...
Apple Inc. Lost Trademark Opposition to “SMAPPLE” in Japan
The Japan Patent Office dismissed a trademark opposition claimed by the U.S. tech giant, Apple Inc. against trademark registration no. 5987344 for word mark “SMAPPLE” in class 9 and 37 by finding less likelihood of confusion with...
Trademark race for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games
The Appeal Board of Japan Patent Office (JPO) refused Trademark Application No. 2016-85559 for a device mark consisting of metallic rings on goods of metallic fishing nets in class 6 on the ground of conflict with Article 4(1)(vi) of the Japan...
ROLEX Unsuccessful in Trademark Battle Over Crown Logo
In a recent trademark decision, the Opposition Board of Japan Patent Office (JPO) dismissed an opposition against IR no. 1263679 filed by Rolex SA, Swiss manufacturer of luxurious watches, based on the iconic Rolex crown.
[Opposition case...
IP High Court: “VANSNEAKER” is confusingly similar to famous “VANS” sneakers
The IP High Court ruled on August 29, 2018 to uphold the Japan Patent Office (JPO) decision to cancel TM Reg. No. 5916735 for the mark “VANSNEAKER” over shoes in class 25 due to a conflict with TM Reg. No. 5245474 for famous mark...
Trademark battle over slogan : Think different vs Tick different
Swiss watch giant Swatch has failed to stop US tech giant Apple from registering “Think Different” as a trademark, which Swatch argued segues too closely to its own “Tick Different” trademark.
THINK DIFFERENT
Apple's "THINK...
Fashion design and copycat
On July 30, the Tokyo District Court delivered a ruling in the case of copycat fashion dispute pertinent to the shape of cold shoulder blouse.
[Case no. Heisei 29(Wa)30499]
Cold Shoulder Blouse
The case was brought into the...
Is Polaroid Photo Frame trademarked?
In a recent decision, the Appeal Board of Japan Patent Office (JPO) admitted trademark registration for the Polaroid Photo Frame design mark (see below) in relation to services of photo printing, digital on-demand printing, processing of...
Google victorious in trademark dispute for YouTube icon
The Trial Board of Japan Patent Office (JPO) recently upheld Google’s invalidation petition against TM Reg. no. 5665763 for the “Video Blog” mark in combination with figurative element (see below) due to similarity to YouTube icon and a...
Trademark Battle: SPEC vs. SPECK
In a trademark opposition filed by Samsonite IP Holdings S.à.r.l., an owner of IR no. 1024440 for the mark “SPECK”, against Japanese TM Reg. no. 5980195 for the mark “SPEC”, the Opposition Board of Japan Patent Office (JPO) dismissed the...