Luxury fashion brand Chanel has lost its long-running trademark battle with Huawei, after an EU judge ruled the two logos “are not similar”.
The court case dates back to 2017, when Chanel filed a ‘notice of opposition’ after Huawei had added to register its trademark with the EU.
The logo in question from Huawei is for computer hardware and shows two rings vertically interlocked. Chanel had argued that the logo was too similar to its famous ‘double c’ (which are horizontally interlocked) logo.
The fashion brand also pointed out that its logo was registered for goods in Class 9, which consists of cameras, sunglasses, glasses; earphones and headphones; computer hardware.
The EU Intellectual Property Office initially rejected Chanel’s attempt to block the registration of Huawei’s logo in 2019 – a decision which Chanel appealed.
Ultimately, the court ruled that the logos were simply not similar enough to be a cause for concern for either company and rejected Chanel’s appeal this week.
“The figurative marks at issue are not similar. The marks must be compared as applied for and registered, without altering their orientation,” the tribunal of judges said.
“In particular, Chanel’s marks have more rounded curves, thicker lines and a horizontal orientation, whereas the orientation of the Huawei mark is vertical. Consequently, the General Court concludes that the marks are different.”
While the decision will come as a win for Huawei, the controversial Chinese technology company still faces a number of legal issues around the world.
Technology site CNET has compiled this list of the various bans put in place against Huawei around the world.
Earlier this week, a report was leaked to the Dutch media suggesting Huawei may have eavesdropped on the calls of 6.5 million Dutch telco users.
