ECJ JUDGES SET PRECEDENT IN SCENT BOTTLE SHAPE TRADEMARKING
June 1st, 2009
BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE ABILITY of perfume companies to trademark a distinctively shaped bottle or other packaging has taken a knock at the European Court of Justice (ECJ). Its Court of First Instance has rejected a bid by Germany's ars Parfum Creation & Consulting (NOTE - SPELLING IS CORRECT 'ars'), of Cologne, to gain European Union-wide trademark rights for a three-dimensional sign consisting of the shape of its spray bottle. That is unusual, being long, cylindrical and narrow - a little like a test tube. But this distinctiveness was not sufficient for ...
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