62023TJ0175_INF
Judgment of the General Court (Eighth Chamber) of 21 February 2024 –Hong Kong NetEase Interactive Entertainment v EUIPO – Medion (LifeAfter)
(Case T-175/23) (
1
)
(EU trade mark – Opposition proceedings – Application for the EU word mark LifeAfter – Earlier EU word mark life – Relative ground for refusal – Likelihood of confusion – Article 8(1)(b) of Regulation (EU) 2017/1001)
1.
EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Relative grounds for refusal – Opposition by the proprietor of an identical or similar earlier mark registered in respect of identical or similar goods or services – Likelihood of confusion with the earlier mark – Refusal to register where there is a relative ground for refusal, even if limited to part of the Union
(European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 8(1)(b))
(see paragraphs 15-17, 55)
2.
EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Relative grounds for refusal – Opposition by the proprietor of an identical or similar earlier mark registered in respect of identical or similar goods or services – Likelihood of confusion with the earlier mark – Coexistence of earlier marks – Recognition of an EU trade mark as having a certain degree of distinctiveness
(European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 8(1)(b))
(see paragraphs 21, 26, 92, 93, 97)
3.
EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Relative grounds for refusal – Opposition by the proprietor of an identical or similar earlier mark registered in respect of identical or similar goods or services – Likelihood of confusion with the earlier mark – Word marks LifeAfter and life
(European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 8(1)(b))
(see paragraphs 32, 46, 51, 69, 77, 83, 86, 64-96)
4.
EU trade mark – Appeals procedure – Action before the EU judicature – Jurisdiction of the General Court – Re-evaluation of the facts in the light of evidence produced for the first time before it – Precluded
(Rules of Procedure of the General Court, Art. 188; European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 72)
(see paragraph 34)
5.
EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Relative grounds for refusal – Opposition by the proprietor of an identical or similar earlier mark registered in respect of identical or similar goods or services – Likelihood of confusion with the earlier mark – Assessment of the likelihood of confusion – Determination of the relevant public – Level of attention of the public
(European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 8(1)(b))
(see paragraphs 37, 42, 45)
6.
EU trade mark – Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark – Relative grounds for refusal – Opposition by the proprietor of an identical or similar earlier mark registered in respect of identical or similar goods or services – Similarity between the marks concerned – Criteria for assessment
(European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 8(1)(b))
(see paragraphs 52, 59, 66, 74)
Operative part
The Court:
1.
Dismisses the action;
2.
Orders Hong Kong NetEase Interactive Entertainment Ltd to bear its own costs and to pay those incurred by Medion AG;
3.
Orders the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) to bear its own costs.
(
1
)	OJ C 179, 22.5.2023.