Though the focus of the case is Friendship (or friends, translation may vary), there has been no love lost between the two parties for the past three years. Wuyi, Zhejiang-based Dadi Printing Company and Danish company Lego has fought all the battles they could fight over No.7164536 trademark '朋友' (Friendship or Friends in English) until Beijing High People’s court judged for them, giving both parties a taste of win and loss.
On January 3, 2009, Dadi filed a registration application for the trademark in dispute in China, which would be approved on October 28, 2010, to be certified for use on Class 28 products, including pokers, cards, automatic mah-jong tables (machines), toy cars, toy dolls and balls for games.
On February 17, 2015, Lego pled to the Trademark Office (TMO) to revoke the registration, arguing the trademark in dispute was not in use for three consecutive years from February 17, 2012 to February 16, 2015 (the designated period).
On November 30, 2015, TMO denied the request of Lego, who then asked for reexamination by the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board (TRAB).
Nearly a year later, on October 21, 2016, TRAB revoked the trademark, holding that evidences from Dadi fail to prove open, real and legitimate commercial use of the trademark in dispute during the designated period. Later Dadi brought the case to Beijing IP Court.
Beijing IP Court held that the evidences prove real, legitimate and effective commercial use of the trademark in dispute onpokers, but not on cards, toy cars, toy dolls and the other products. It dismissed the TRAB decision and ordered TRAB to make a de novo one.
The disgruntled Dadi appealed to Beijing High People's court.
After hearing, in addition to echoing IP Court's determination on registration for pokers, Beijing High extended the registration of the trademark in question to cards and automatic mah-jong tables (machines) for they are in a similar group with pokers.
In this connection, Beijing High held that although the trial court was wrong by revoking the registration of the trademark in dispute on cards, automatic mah-jong tables (machines), the judgment remained a correct one. Therefore, after correcting the above flaws, Beijing High upheld the first instance decision and ordered TRAB to review the case based on the reasoning of the second-instance court. (by Wang Guohao)
(Editor Shao Jingjing)
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