3 stripes out for Adidas
This case study focuses on the battle fought by Adidas to protect its mark in the form of three stripes, exploring the implications of the historical as well as more recent decisions of the court.
You can search for competing trademarks yourself using the database of the intellectual property office of the country of your interest. Trademark registries are publicly available, so you should be able to find yours on the IPO website or via Google.
However, we have to point out that members of the general public usually only search for trademarks identical to theirs, which doesn't provide a complete picture of your registration chances. In reality, your application will be threatened not only by identical but also by similar trademarks.
The concept of similarity within trademark law is fairly complex, as the answer to what makes two marks similar or dissimilar is not straightforward. Therefore, we recommend seeking professional help from a trademark attorney or a law firm that will know what similarities to look out for in your competition. Moreover, they will have access to more refined search tools on top of the database.
If you are interested in uncovering brands that could pose problems to your application, check out our trademark search which we offer free of charge with a result within 24 hours.
I have several variations of my logo. Which one should I register?
Should I get a trademark when I start my business, or should I do it later?
If my trademark application gets dismissed, do I lose the fee?
As a foreigner, do I need trademark registration to sell products in the US?
Will word mark registration protect different capitalization of the name?
Can I make my trademark all capital letters instead of a mix of lower and upper case?
Can anyone use the Madrid System to register a trademark internationally?
Is there a price difference when filing wordmark vs figurative mark?
Our team of experienced trademark attorneys is here to help you! Simply send us an email outlining your request and we'll be happy to assist you.