Gucci challenges Guciheaven

Guccio Gucci S.P.A recently prevails in a trademark dispute in the first-instance decision made by Beijing No.1 Intermediate People’s Court, denying the Fujian-based Guciheaven Company’s filing 古奇天伦 GUCIHEAVEN and its figure as trademarks on products of wallet. 

Guciheaven alleges that distinctive differences in inscape, meaning and overall visual effect exist between the trademark in dispute and cited trademark, thus the similarity was not constituted. Besides, the differences also exist in consumer group and consumer site between the two trademarks. 

The court held that the trademark in dispute consists of 古奇天伦, GUCIHEAVEN and its figure, and 古奇天伦 and GUCIHEAVEN are distinctive to be distinguished. The cited trademark includes GUCCI and its Chinese character 古奇. The letter GUCI of GUCIHEAVEN is similar with GUCCI in pronunciation. The 古奇天伦contains most of all 古奇characters. If the two trademarks were used on the same or similar products, it may cause confusion among the consumers. 

The court also held that despite differences in the price of the products, the distribution channel and consumer group are almost the same. Besides, GUCIHAVEN company fails to prove that the public could distinguish them after the using of trademark in question. So ordered.