NEWS
Google wins AdWords battle against Louis Vuitton
T e European Court of Justice has ruled that Google is not liable for trademark infringement by allowing companies to use rivals' trademarks as advertising keywords through its AdWords programme.
T e court ruled that although Google provides a platform for the adverts, it is the responsibility of individual advertisers to ensure that they do not infringe trademarks.
UK Trading Standards tackle counterfeits
A UK Trading Standards raid on a Hertfordshire market has produced one of the largest hauls of confi scated counterfeit goods seen in the last decade.
On March 6, a joint operation between Trading Standards and UK police targeted 11 stalls, resulting in the seizure of clothes, shoes and CDs. Two stallholders were questioned by police about the fake branded goods.
Copies of Nike, Adidas, Gucci and Dior products were amongst the items for sale.
Despite the success of the seizure, some commentators remain sceptical about the likelihood of further raids.
Graham Robinson, managing director at IP investigator Farncombe International, said that it is “well known” that Trading Standards is without “adequate resources” to enable it to restrict the sale of counterfeit goods at markets such as Bovingdon.
Robinson said that while the seizure may “act as a good deterrent...in the short term”, fake branded goods have been sold at open markets for many years and this looks likely to continue.
As brand owners focus more of their counterfeit- protection eff orts on detecting and preventing counterfeit sales in online marketplaces, the traditional routes of counterfeits to market “continue to be a problem and should not be ignored”, added Robinson.
He said: “Trading Standards, brand owners and market operators should continue to work together in partnership to address the problem of counterfeit goods.”
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T e case began in 2004 when LVMH, parent of Louis Vuitton, sued Google complaining that it permitted companies selling counterfeit products to link advertising to searches for Louis Vuitton. LVMH won early victories in the French courts, but the matter was referred to the ECJ by France's Court of Cassation.
“ ALTHOUGH GOOGLE PROVIDES A PLATFORM FOR THE ADVERTS, IT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF INDIVIDUAL ADVERTISERS TO ENSURE THAT THEY DO NOT INFRINGE TRADEMARKS.”
While the ruling looks like good news for Google, AdWords users may be concerned that the court opened the door for companies such as LVMH to sue them for trademark infringement. Google will have to act swiſt ly if a company informs it of infringement, and companies using others' trademarks as keywords will have to make it clear that they do not have an affi liation to the company concerned.
Dr Harjinder Obhi, senior litigation counsel at Google, said: “We believe that user interest is best served by maximizing the choice of keywords, ensuring relevant and informative advertising for a wide variety of diff erent contexts...the Court confi rmed that Google has not infringed trade mark law by allowing advertisers to bid for keywords corresponding to their competitors’ trade marks. It also confi rmed that European law that protects internet hosting services applies to Google’s AdWords advertising system. T is is important because it is a fundamental principle behind the free fl ow of information over the internet.”
T e court also ruled on joined cases concerning travel agent Viaticum and dating service CNRRH.
World Intellectual Property Review March/April 2010
7
©iStockphoto.com / ulucceylani
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