In issue 2\/2025 of the magazine \u201cGewerblicher Rechtsschutz und Urheberrecht in der Praxis\u201d (GRUR-Prax, Intellectual property and copyright law in practice), BOEHMERT & BOEHMERT partner and attorney at law Dr. Eckhard Ratjen addresses the question of whether there is a likelihood of confusion when an averagely distinctive word element is taken from an earlier figurative mark that contains another, equivalent and averagely distinctive word element.<\/p>\n
The background to this is the decision of the General Court of the European Union of 13.11.2024 – T-444\/23 Tina\/Bibi&Tina, which confirms a likelihood of confusion in Classes 3 and 5 between the name element \u201cTina\u201d of the EU trade mark Bibi&Tina and the disputed trade mark \u201cTina\u201d for various cosmetics and hygiene products. Although there was a slight visual similarity and an average phonetic similarity, the General Cout took the view that the disputed trade mark would be perceived as a different version of the earlier mark \u201cBibi&Tina\u201d and not as an independent mark with a different commercial origin.<\/p>\n