Post by Christian on Jun 22, 2014 19:47:53 GMT 1
No, this is not about Rietze.
I had expected this to make the rounds a bit more by now, but so far it seems to be a non-issue. Perhaps that's due to the special nature of the case.
In September 2013 Volkswagen brought action against Arsenal M, German manufacturer/distributor of military resin kits. This was prompted by Arsenal M's kit of the "Porsche" Type 82/92-SS, which looks a bit like this: www.fidelismodels.com/product/ArsenalM_112204031.html. As you can see, it's a VW Bug.
Now, with the car in question being older than 30 years and therefore not generally protected by copyright law in Germany, one would think that it's fair game to make a model of it. This is not so, because the shape of the VW Bug, deemed especially recognizable, is protected by a three-dimensional trademark (as is the VW Type 1 Transporter, the MB 300 SL and a bunch of other iconic cars). To make matters worse for Arsenal M the claimed damages of EUR 200,000 were blown somewhat out of proportion.
Anyway, the first appointment at the Frankfurt district court was on April 15, 2014, where VW lawyers claimed that the model in question was identical to the VW Bug, that there was likelihood of confusion with a VW Bug, and that Arsenal M had used the appeal of the Volkswagen make to better sell the model.
Legal technicalities aside, this is a pretty clear cut case and not easily conferrable to others disputes. The question to be answered is far more specialist in nature than appears at first glance. It's not about whether or not VW's claim to the trademark is justified, or whether or not Arsenal M was wrong or right to go against it. It's simply this: can the "Porsche" Type 82 shape be considered identical to the VW Bug's. If it can be, the case is lost for Arsenal M.
On May 27, the court of first instance did indeed rule in favor of Volkswagen. Arsenal M is taking it to the next instance and intends to go through with it until the court of ultimate resort. I am keeping an eye on the proceedings.
I had expected this to make the rounds a bit more by now, but so far it seems to be a non-issue. Perhaps that's due to the special nature of the case.
In September 2013 Volkswagen brought action against Arsenal M, German manufacturer/distributor of military resin kits. This was prompted by Arsenal M's kit of the "Porsche" Type 82/92-SS, which looks a bit like this: www.fidelismodels.com/product/ArsenalM_112204031.html. As you can see, it's a VW Bug.
Now, with the car in question being older than 30 years and therefore not generally protected by copyright law in Germany, one would think that it's fair game to make a model of it. This is not so, because the shape of the VW Bug, deemed especially recognizable, is protected by a three-dimensional trademark (as is the VW Type 1 Transporter, the MB 300 SL and a bunch of other iconic cars). To make matters worse for Arsenal M the claimed damages of EUR 200,000 were blown somewhat out of proportion.
Anyway, the first appointment at the Frankfurt district court was on April 15, 2014, where VW lawyers claimed that the model in question was identical to the VW Bug, that there was likelihood of confusion with a VW Bug, and that Arsenal M had used the appeal of the Volkswagen make to better sell the model.
Legal technicalities aside, this is a pretty clear cut case and not easily conferrable to others disputes. The question to be answered is far more specialist in nature than appears at first glance. It's not about whether or not VW's claim to the trademark is justified, or whether or not Arsenal M was wrong or right to go against it. It's simply this: can the "Porsche" Type 82 shape be considered identical to the VW Bug's. If it can be, the case is lost for Arsenal M.
On May 27, the court of first instance did indeed rule in favor of Volkswagen. Arsenal M is taking it to the next instance and intends to go through with it until the court of ultimate resort. I am keeping an eye on the proceedings.
