Bizarre burger dispute: Who is allowed to use the “Big Mac” brand? The EU court has now decided: It depends on what’s in it.
McDonald’s has suffered a defeat in the dispute over the “Big Mac” trademark before the EU court. The American fast-food giant is no longer allowed to use the trademark for poultry products, the judges in Luxembourg decided. The well-known Big Mac, which according to McDonald’s is made with beef, is unlikely to be affected by this.
The background is a long-running legal dispute between McDonalds and the Irish fast-food chain Supermac’s over the registration of the trademark “Big Mac”. McDonald’s registered it in 1996. In 2017, however, Supermac’s wanted to have this entry deleted, arguing that McDonald’s had not seriously used the trademark for five years. The European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) partially granted this, but conceded to McDonald’s that the trademark would remain protected for dishes made from meat and poultry products, for sandwiches and for services related to restaurants and drive-in facilities.
However, the EU court has now overturned this decision and further restricted McDonald’s trademark rights to the Big Mac. McDonald’s is therefore no longer allowed to use the trademark for poultry products or for services related to franchise restaurants and drive-in stores.
McDonald’s did not provide sufficient evidence to the EUIPO that the trademark was being used seriously for poultry products, the judges said. To do this, the fast-food giant would have had to provide information on sales volumes, for example. McDonald’s also did not prove that it was using the “Big Mac” trademark to operate restaurants.
The ruling can still be appealed before the highest European court, the ECJ.
Source: Stern
