“As the press service of the court reports, this phrase, which has become a symbol of Ukraine’s struggle against Russian aggression, “is not perceived as a sign of commercial origin.””, — write: www.radiosvoboda.org
As the press service of the court reports, this phrase, which has become a symbol of Ukraine’s struggle against Russian aggression, “is not perceived as a sign of commercial origin.”
The State Border Service of Ukraine asked the General Court of the European Union to annul the decision of the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) dated December 1, 2023, which refused to register this phrase (in Russian and English) as an EU trademark. The registration was filed for a very wide range of goods, as well as for publishing, educational, entertainment and sports services.
EUIPO refused registration on the grounds that the mark was a political slogan devoid of any distinctive features for the goods and services in question.
The court rejected the claim of the DPSU, as it believes that “the phrase was widely used and disseminated by mass media,
immediately after its first use to rally support for Ukraine, and became a symbol of Ukraine’s struggle against Russian aggression.”
The court also noted that the phrase “has been used extensively in the non-commercial context and will necessarily be very closely associated with that context at this recent historical moment.”
“Russian warship, go …!” – a phrase uttered by the Ukrainian military in response to the offer of a Russian warship to surrender during the attack on Zmiiny Island on the first day of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24. After that, the saying became one of the symbols of Ukraine’s struggle against the Russian invaders.