The European Commission, represented by Office Freylinger S.A. before the OHIM filed on behalf of the European Space Agency (ESA) a semi-figurative Community trademark application “GALILEO” for the following services in class 42 “Research and development in the field of satellite radio navigation”.
Both the Opposition Division and Board of Appeal rejected the opposition filed by Galileo International Technology LLC on the basis of two earlier Community trademarks “GALILEO” filed for classes 9, 16, 35, 38, 39, 41 and 42.
Action was finally brought by the opponent against the decision of the First Board of Appeal before the General Court.
Yet the applicant’s arguments – developed by Office Freylinger S.A. before the First Board of Appeal of OHIM (Case R 1423/2005-1) – also convinced the General Court.
Consequently the appeal filed by the opponent was dismissed since the European Commission’s covered services of research and development in the field of satellite radio navigation were definitively approved as being neither an industrial nor an economic activity aimed at the general public, but as simply focusing on scientific innovation.
It followed by the Judgement of the General Court on September 11, 2014 (Case T-450/11), that the Board of Appeal had rightly rejected the opposition filed by Galileo International Technology LLC since the goods and services between the trademarks at issue are to be considered as different.
Nathalie Cailteux