The Berlin Higher Regional Court (OLG) has declared the word mark “Black Friday” to have expired. Black Friday GmbH, which secured the necessary trademark usage rights for the word mark “Black Friday” 2016 for the German market, announced the OLG’s decision on Monday.
“With the current decision of the OLG Berlin, there is now legal clarity for us and our customers regarding the term Black Friday,” says Konrad Kreid, Managing Director of Black Friday GmbH. As a result of the decision of the Berlin Higher Regional Court, the word mark will henceforth be deleted from the trademark register.
The correctness of the “Black Friday” word mark has been discussed several times in the past, and the German Patent and Trademark Office ordered the cancellation of the “Black Friday” mark for all goods and services in 2019, but revised parts of the decision shortly afterwards anew.
The validity of the Federal Court’s decision could also be challenged by Super Union Holdings Limited, the trademark owner. If the company raises a non-admission appeal and this is upheld, the procedure will automatically be continued as an appeal procedure at the Federal Court of Justice, explains the statement and emphasizes that the judgment would not be final until the decision on the non-admission appeal has been made.