Innovation First Inc v OHIM, EU General Court
The European Union General Court has rejected an appeal against refusal by OHIM (the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market) to allow the registration of “NANO” as a European Community Trade Mark. The application for NANO in respect of robot-related goods had been refused as it was deemed to be descriptive of the goods. The applicant argued that there was no evidence to show that “nano” would mean anything to the relevant public when used alone and not simply as a prefix. The EU General Court did not agree with that argument. It said that OHIM had been entitled to base its decision on its practical experience without the need for evidence.