Case T-230/05: Action brought on 24 June 2005 by Golf USA Inc. against the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs)
Date: 2005-08-20
Institutions: Court of First Instance
Subjects: EU trade mark, European Union Intellectual Property Office, action for annulment (EU), clothing, footwear industry, sport, sports equipment, trade-mark law

C 205/30

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

20.8.2005

Pleas in law and main arguments

The applicant, which is a company for the collective manage-
ment of musical intellectual-property rights in Greece, lodged a
complaint with the European Commission alleging infringe-
ment of Articles 81 and 82 EC by the companies Erato,
Apollon and Grammo, which are responsible for the manage-
ment of related rights of, respectively, singers, musicians who
play an instrument, and record companies and producers. In its
complaint,
those companies,
which hold a monopoly in Greece over related rights in the
foregoing sectors, acting in concert set very high charges in
respect of related rights, with the result that many entertain-
ment undertakings, not being able to pay them, stopped using
music in their premises and writers of music, members of the
applicant, were also deprived of
their intellectual property
rights.

the applicant maintained that

The applicant seeks the annulment of the Commission decision
which rejected its complaint. It submits that the Commission
mistakenly considered that there was no risk of misfunctioning
of the common market because all the parties involved were
established in Greece. According to the applicant, the mere fact
that an infringement of the competition rules occurs exclusively
within just one Member State is not sufficient for the infringe-
ment
further
to be considered insubstantial. The applicant
submits that the Commission failed to examine all the grounds
of the complaint lodged. Finally, the applicant pleads that the
infringement relied upon may affect inter-State trade.

Court of First Instance of the European Communities on 24
June 2005 by Golf USA Inc., established in Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, USA, represented by A.H. de Bosch Kemper-de
Hilster, lawyer, with an address for service in Luxembourg.

The applicant claims that the Court should:

— annul the contested decision of the Second Board of Appeal
of the OHIM of 25 April 2005 in Case R 823/2004-2
(GOLF-USA);

— order the defendant to bear the costs.

Pleas in law and main arguments

Community trade mark
concerned:

Word mark GOLF USA for goods
and services in classes 25 (sports,
leisure shoes, outer clothes etc.),
28 (sport articles including golf
clubs)
(commercial
35
retailing services of sport articles)

and

Decision of
iner:

Decision of
of Appeal:

Pleas in law:

the exam-

Refuses the application in total

the Board

Dismisses the appeal

Violation of Article 7(1)(b) and (c)
of Council Regulation No 40/94.

Action brought on 24 June 2005 by Golf USA Inc. against
the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market
(Trade Marks and Designs)

(Case T-230/05)

(2005/C 205/54)

(Language of the case: English)

Action brought on 15 June 2005 by Corsica Ferries France
against Commission of the European Communities

(Case T-231/05)

(2005/C 205/55)

(Language of the case: French)

An action against the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal
(Trade Marks and Designs) was brought before the
Market

An action against the Commission of the European Commu-
nities was brought before the Court of First Instance of the
European Communities on 15 June 2005 by Corsica Ferries
France, established in Bastia (France), represented by Stéphane
Rodrigues and Alice Jaume, lawyers.