Bacardi's mark for a blue bottle flies through registration

The Board of Appeal for Patents and Trademarks has reversed a decision to refuse Bacardi & Company Ltd's application to register the shape and design of a blue bottle as a trademark.

At first instance, the Patent and Trademarks Office (PTO) refused registration on the basis that the mark was merely a reproduction of product packaging and therefore lacked sufficient distinctiveness pursuant to Section 13 of the Trademarks Act. In addition, the PTO reasoned that there was insufficient evidence to substantiate the claim that the proposed mark had been used in Denmark.

On appeal, the Board of Appeal for Patents and Trademarks reversed the decision. It held that the proposed mark is sufficiently distinctive and also noted that the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market had found it to be acceptable.

Mads Marstrand-Jorgensen, Norsker & Jacoby, Copenhagen