Judgment of the General Court (Third Chamber) of 23 May 2019 — Arçelik v EUIPO (MicroGarden)
(Case T‑364/18)
(EU trade mark — Application for EU word mark MicroGarden — Absolute ground for refusal — Descriptiveness — Article 7(1)(c) of Regulation (EU) 2017/1001)
1.      EU trade mark — Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark — Absolute grounds for refusal — Marks composed exclusively of signs or indications capable of designating the characteristics of a product or service — Aim — Need to preserve availability
(European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 7(1)(c))
(see para. 16)
2.      EU trade mark — Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark — Absolute grounds for refusal — Marks composed exclusively of signs or indications capable of designating the characteristics of a product or service — Concept/Meaning/Definition — Mark composed of a word or neologism resulting from a combination of elements
(European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 7(1)(c))
(see paras 17-19)
3.      EU trade mark — Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark — Absolute grounds for refusal — Marks composed exclusively of signs or indications capable of designating the characteristics of a product or service — Criteria
(European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 7(1)(c))
(see para. 20)
4.      EU trade mark — Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark — Absolute grounds for refusal — Marks composed exclusively of signs or indications capable of designating the characteristics of a product or service — Word mark MicroGarden
(European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 7(1)(c))
(see paras 23-28)
5.      EU trade mark — Definition and acquisition of the EU trade mark — Absolute grounds for refusal — Overlap of the scope of the grounds set out in Article 7(1)(b) and Article 7(1)(c) of Regulation 2017/1001
(European Parliament and Council Regulation 2017/1001, Art. 7(1)(b) and (c))
(see para. 32)
Re
Action brought against the decision of the Second Board of Appeal of EUIPO of 4 April 2018 (Case R 163/2018-2), relating to an application for registration of the word sign MicroGarden as an EU trade mark.
Operative part
The Court:
1.
Dismisses the action;
2.
Orders Arçelik AS to pay the costs.