Freely Available British and Irish Public Legal Information
[Home] [Databases] [World Law] [Multidatabase Search] [Help] [Feedback]
United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office Decisions
You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office Decisions >> MALTIN POLAR (Trade Mark: Opposition) [2004] UKIntelP o02704 (30 January 2004)
URL: http://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKIntelP/2004/o02704.html
Cite as: [2004] UKIntelP o02704, [2004] UKIntelP o2704
[New search] [Printable PDF version] [Help]
MALTIN POLAR (Trade Mark: Opposition) [2004] UKIntelP o02704 (30 January 2004)
For the whole decision click here: o02704
Trade mark decision
- BL Number
- O/027/04
- Decision date
- 30 January 2004
- Hearing officer
- Mr M Reynolds
- Mark
- MALTIN POLAR
- Classes
- 32
- Applicant
- Cerveceria Polar, Compania Anonima
- Opponent
- Berentzen Brennereien GmbH & Co Kg
- Opposition
- Section 5(2)(a) or 5(2)(b)
Result
Section 5(2)(b) - Opposition for the most part successful
Points Of Interest
- 1. Identicality of marks.
- 2. Comparison of the marks. MALTIN POLAR v POLAR.
- 3. Comparison of the goods Class 32 v Class 33.
Summary
The opposition was based on the mark POLAR registered in Classes 33 and 42.
The Hearing Officer quickly selected Section 5(2)(b) as the proper ground of opposition, since the marks were not identical.
Comparing the marks under Section 5(2)(b) the Hearing Officer found them distinctively similar in a key respect.
He therefore went on to compare the goods/services.
In the result he found that the goods applied for were for the most part either similar or closely similar to the opponents’ "broad ranging specification". Overall he found a likelihood of confusion except in respect of a narrow residue of the applicants’ specification. The opposition succeeded in respect of the remainder.