Puma’s Floral Collaboration, MP’s Sweet Delicacy “Morena Gajak” Filed for GI, Candy Breakfast with Hershey’s and more, brought to you by the Trademark Attorneys at BananaIP (BIP) Counsel.
INDIAN TRADEMARK UPDATES
Hatsun’s Arokya Defeats Arogya
Hatsun Agro Product Ltd, a popular dairy company based in Chennai, filed for a permanent trademark injunction to restrain A.Z. Arogya Milk, a proprietorship firm in Chennai from using the mark “AZ AROGYA” for milk. Hatsun, the registered owners of the mark ‘AROKYA’ since 1994 has filed this suit alleging that the latter has adopted a similar mark with the intention of deceiving the public and to also cause damage to the reputation of Hatsun. The High Court of Madras observed that the “AZ AROGYA” mark was prima facie deceptively similar to ‘AROKYA’, and also due to the similarities in the packaging and color schemes of the products, would easily mislead the public. The Court, therefore granted a permanent injunction against A.Z. Arogya Milk.
INTERNATIONAL TRADEMARK UPDATES
Sussex Royal Foundation Looking to go Global
Earlier this month we had informed our readers about the British Royals filing for a separate trademark application for their charitable foundation, Sussex Royal – The Foundation of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, after separating themselves from The Royal Foundation. With the new filings in place, Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan are planning on taking their foundation to a global scale. The trademark ‘Sussex Royal’ has been filed in various countries like Australia, Canada, the EU and US under numerous classes consisting of clothing, footwear, charitable fundraising and management, as well as education and social care services including the organizing and conducting of emotional support groups.
Mario Files for ‘Mario and Luigi’ Despite Bankruptcy
Nintendo, the Japanese video game giant, most popularly known for producing the iconic game Mario, has applied for a new trademark application, ‘Mario and Luigi’ in South America. This filing suggests that the company has plans for more entries in the ‘Mario and Luigi’ series even though its previous developer AlphaDream file for bankruptcy last year. It is interesting to note that this trademark comes just a few months after AlphaDream closed shop. Guess all the Mario fans have to just wait and see.
BRAND LICENSING UPDATES
Puma’s Floral Collaboration with Designer Tabitha Simmons
Puma, the German sports goods manufacturer has collaborated with a UK based model turned designer, Tabitha Simmons, to create a new collection of footwear and apparel. The new Puma collection is a reimagination of the Puma Cell Stellar and Ralph Sampson lines of shows and is adorned with Simmons’ signature floral patterns. Apart from footwear and apparel, Puma’s collection also boasts of backpacks which reflects the same designs.
Candy Breakfast with Hershey’s
General Mills, a U.S. based food products major has partnered with Hersey’s, one of the largest chocolate manufacturers in the world, to bring out a new candy inspired breakfast cereal line. The new breakfast cereals consist of Hershey’s Kisses, Jolly Rancher and a new version of Reese’s Puffs. Hershey’s had earlier collaborated with General Mills to produce cereals such as the original Reese’s Puffs as well as Hershey’s Cookies and Cream Fillows Cereal, and Cocoa Puffs. The cereals will make their debut in the upcoming months.
FRANCHISING UPDATES
Mumoso to Add Over 300 Retail Outlets in India
Mumuso, a popular lifestyle brand from South Korea, is seeking potential franchise partners to open more than 300 retail outlets across India by mid-2022. The brand had entered the Indian market in September, 2018 with its stores in Kolkata and Mumbai, and now plans to expand to other metros and tier II cities such as Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune, Surat, Goa, Jaipur and Indore. The lifestyle brand plans to expand its reach across various sectors including food and beverage accessories, household stationery, bags, children products, small electronics, lifestyle items, etc.
DOMAIN NAME DISPUTE UPDATES
Trademark Holder Feev Guilty of Reverse Domain Name Hijacking
The WIPO domain name dispute panelist finds the fintech/cryptocurrency business Feev Holding B.V. guilty of an attempt to reverse domain name hijack in using the UDRP in bad faith to deprive a registered domain-name holder of a domain name. Feev Holding filed a cybersquatting complaint against Firas Dabboussi who had registered the domain feev.com in 2002 claiming it was done in bad faith and that he lacked legitimate interest in the domain. However Feev Holding’s trademark “Feev” only dated back to October 2019 and they had had a failed negotiation with Firas Dabboussi to acquire the domain. The panelist noted that the domain name could not have been registered in bad faith to target Feev Holding as it was done well before Feev Holding’s existence. Given several facts of the case, it was found that Feev Holding might have filed the complaint in bad faith to attempt to deprive Firas Dabboussi of his domain. Thus the complaint was denied and found to be an abuse of the administrative proceeding.
GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION UPDATES
MP’s Sweet Delicacy “Morena Gajak” Filed for GI
Morena Gajak is a dry sweet made of sesame oil and jaggery in the Morena district of Madhya Pradesh. The sweet is said to originate back to the 18th century and has gained popularity for more than 150 years now. It is prepared during winter as it has body warming properties that would prevent common cold and cough. The dish is deemed to have a unique taste due to various components like the usage of water from the Chambal River, jaggery from the Joura tehsil and a specific production method. The Application was filed by Morena Gajak Nirmata Association under food stuffs category in December, 2019.
Authored and compiled byUma T.S and Shreya Chaddha
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The Trademark News Bulletin is brought to you by the Trademark/Copyright, IP Transactional Strategy Divisions of BananaIP Counsels, a Top IP Firm in India. Led by Sanjeeth Hegde, BIP’s trademark attorneys are among the leading experts in the field. If you have any questions, or need any clarifications, please write to contact@bananaip.com with the subject: Trademark News.
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