Bundesgerichtshof, 18 Oktober 2017, Dextro
On the 18th of october the Bundesgerichtshof annulled two Bundespatentgericht rulings on the eligibility for trademark protection. The Bundespatentgericht decided on the 27th of december 2016 that a three dimensional shape of a tablet with rounded corners was not eligible for protection as a trademark, because the shape would be based exclusively on technical necessity. The Bundesgerichtshof overrules this: although the majority of the shape of the tablet comes from technical necessity, the rounded corners and edges are not technically determined. A shape can only not be protected as a trademark when all of its features are determined by technical function. Since this is not the case for all features of the three dimensional shape, the Bundesgerichtshof annuls the previous decision and refers the case back to the Bundespatentgericht.
See the press release for more information.
