On September 12, The National Basketball Association (NBA) secured a trademark victory, after the EU General Court dismissed an appeal against an earlier decision.

In January 2013, NBA Properties applied to trademark a figurative sign for the New Orleans Pelicans, a professional US basketball team, at the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO).

The applied-for mark depicts a bird flying with a basketball in its mouth, with the words ‘New Orleans’ underneath the image and the word ‘Pelicans’ above.

Also in 2013, Germany-based office equipment manufacturer Pelikan Vertriebsgesellschaft filed a notice of opposition in respect of all the goods for the applied-for mark.

Pelikan’s figurative mark (EU number 30,310,673) is made up of a black and white sign that reads ‘Pelikan’ with a small image of a pelican.

The opposition was based on the grounds that the marks were similar and there would be a likelihood of confusion.

In 2015, the EUIPO’s Opposition Division upheld Pelikan’s opposition.

However, in 2016, the EUIPO’s Fourth Board of Appeal annulled the decision after the NBA appealed.

According to the appeal board, the signs were different and would not create any confusion.

Source: WIPR