Protection Of Colour Combination Marks

Colour combination marks also faced difficulties in 2017, and it is not yet apparent whether things will be more straightforward under the EUTM reform package.

In November 2017, the EU General Court decided that Red Bull's well-known blue/grey colour combination was insufficiently precise to be validly registered as a trade mark. Subject to any appeal by Red Bull to the CJEU, the decision was a blow for brand owners, setting the test for registrability of two-colour marks very high. Indeed, the effect of the decision seems to be that colour marks comprising colour...