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Profanity as a trademark

Profanity as a trademark

The Court of Justice of the European Union recently dealt with an interesting case, namely one concerning the registration of a vulgar term as a trademark, in a dispute between the German Constantin Film Produktion GmbH and EUIPO (case no. C 240/18). What exactly is the dispute about? The German film production company Constantin Film Produktion GmbH applied to the European Union Intellectual Property Office to register a rather controversial word trademark - "Fack Ju Göhte". What was the decision of the authority? The Office refused the registration. In its justification, it stated that the word mark, by referring to the English "fuck" or the German "ficken" (which has a similar meaning to the English equivalent), is vulgar in nature. Furthermore, according to EUIPO, such a word mark not only distorts the name of the artist Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, but also insults it by referring to offensive expressions, which may ultimately be considered contrary to good morals.

Table of contents:

Is “FUCK” already bad manners?

Disagreeing with this decision, the German film producer appealed to the Court of Justice of the European Union, which also adopted a position different from that represented by the German company. As a result, in the judgment of January 24, 2018 (case no. T-69/17), the court dismissed the appeal. In the justification, the position of the first-instance body was upheld, in particular with regard to the similarity to the English phrase “fuck you.” Furthermore, the court pointed out that, regardless of the film’s popularity, viewers will perceive the disputed mark as offensive, and the fact that the sign itself will not shock a high school audience is irrelevant.

Constantin Film Produktion GmbH decided to appeal the judgment to the Court of Justice of the European Union. As justification, it was stated that the mark was superficially examined, i.e., instead of “Fack Ju Göhte,” “Fuck you, Goethe” was examined. Additionally, according to the German company, the phrase “fuck you,” due to its prevalence and evolution, is not considered offensive. Finally, reference was made to the final part of the mark, “Göhte,” stating that it is merely a reference to disliked school subjects.

Fack Ju Göhte – challenged in the Court of Justice of the European Union.

Given the current state of affairs, the Tribunal’s decision would seem obvious, but for now, the Advocate General has issued an opinion on the matter, which, in a way, tipped the scales in favor of the German company. He emphasized, among other things, the guarantee of freedom of expression, which also applies to trademarks. In addition, the disputed trademark originates from the German language and is characterized by an unusual phonetic spelling, which, given the European scope of protection, may not be obviously vulgar to everyone. He also referred to the typically vulgar term “Die wanderhure” (“whore”), which was nevertheless registered. Taking into account all of the above, the Advocate General believes that the judgment should be overturned, as the arguments of the Office and the Court were not sufficiently convincing.

Table of contents:

Is nothing human alien to us – and should even vulgar language be protected by law?

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