Apr6
bet365 Receives Fine of £582k From the UKGC for Violating AML, and Social Responsibility
Bet365 Trademark Dispute Close to Settlement After Long-term Protection Struggle
December 14, 2019 TamaraTam
A long-consuming legal dispute between famous Bet365 provider and German citizen could finally come to an end. After six years of legal struggle before the EU court, the provider is close to getting a positive decision.
Looking Back
Bet365 ed its brand name for trademark protection in the EU in 2007. The company has been looking for protection in accordance with EU trademark rules. After receiving approval in 2012, German citizen, Robert Hansen, made efforts to discredit the trademark. The legal fight has lasted more than six years, but now it comes to the end.
The EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) ed the provider five years ago while rejecting Hansen’s attempts. After submitting an appeal against EUIPO decision, EUIPO Fifth Board of Appeal changed the initial decision of the first instance body. According to the decision of the Fifth Board of Appeal “even though it was already an established brand and a commercial success, it hadn’t become so big that approving the trademark should have been allowed.“
EU Instance
Bet365 didn’t pull back in its legal efforts. The provider appealed the Board decision and the case was submitted to the EU General Court. According to the EU Courts’ initial ruling in 2017, the operator has been allowed to the trademark under the EUIPO’s Class 41, which includes betting, gambling and gaming services, without being approved the registration in additional classes including financial services, software, advertising and similar.
The EU decision didn’t prevent Robert Hansen to file another appeal. However, the Court of Justice of the European Union dismissed the appeal in 2018 which was another relief for Bet366. Everything culminated earlier this year when the appeal was reinstated and delivered to the Fourth Board of Appeal.
According to the recent decision of the Fourth Board of Appeal, “Bet365 is a legitimate brand that deserves European trademark protection, just like the Champions League and others.“ However, the company cannot protect the name in additional classes. This decision will probably lead to the closure of the case and each party will have to cover its court costs.
Source:
“Bet365 wins/loses EU trademark protection fight“, Erik Gibbs, calvinayre.com, December 9, 2019.
Leave a Reply
Related News
It was one of the interesting cases for betting operators. However, it was more than expected to see Bet365 winning the case. I think that Hansen was having too free time so he just negated the provider’s rights. LOL!