Ferrero’s Trademark Application Encountered “Waterloo”

World-known chocolate manufacturer Italian Ferrero Co., Ltd. encountered “Waterloo” when filing a figurative trademark application for its long-term use product package.
Recently, the Beijing No.1 Intermediate People’s Court upheld the decision made by the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board (TRAB) under the State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC) on the ground that the trademark is lack of istinctiveness. At present, the sentence is effective.
The above trademark was registered in Italy in December 2007 on Class 30 coffee products with dark orange, light chestnut, blue, yellow, green, beige, and white as its specified color. In November 2008, based on the judgment that the trademark is short of distinctivess, the Trademark Office, also under the SAIC, dismissed Ferrero’s application for territorial extension protection.
Ferrero thereafter brought the case to TRAB. In May 2011, TRAB rejected the application again, considering that the trademark can hardly distinguish the source of commodities and is lack of significance as consumers often identify the figure with a
package design or publicity picture rather than a trademark.
Dissatisfied, Ferrero then brought the case to Beijing No.1 Intermediate People’s Court. Recently, Beijing No.1 Intermediate People’s Court upheld TRAB’s decision.

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