Hershey's defends its ICE BREAKERS mark

On April 28 2014 Russia’s Intellectual Property Court upheld a lower court’s decision to cancel the trademark ICEBREAKER (written as 'IceBReAKeR'), registered by Krasny Oktyabr (meaning 'Red October'), which is part of United Confectioners, the leading Russian confectionery maker.

The ICEBREAKER trademark was registered in March 1996 in Class 30 of the Nice Classification to cover the Russian confectionery maker’s butterscotch candy.

Well-known US chocolate maker The Hershey Company, which produces mints and gum products under the name Ice Breakers, filed an action for the cancellation of the mark on the ground of non-use.

In the court of first instance hearing, an attorney representing the Hershey Company had alleged that the defendant had never used the brand and that the plaintiff had tried to settle the issue out of court.

The attorney representing Krasny Oktyabr had argued that the Hershey Company had not provided documented proof of its intent to use the mark in Russia.

Jelena Jankovic, PETOŠEVIC, Belgrade