KEYWORDS, CODES AND BALLS


Google keyword case – now in Israel

CNet reports that the latest trade mark dispute involving Google selling advertising keywords to someone other than the trade mark owner is taking place in Israel. The action is being brought by clothing company Matim Li, which is seeking $530,000 in damages.

The IPKat is sure that there’s a great lesson to be learnt from the different treatment that the keywords cases get in the various different jurisdictions – he’s just not sure what it is yet.


Judge in sense of humour shock (continued)

The IPKat was kicking himself for not having noticed the secret code in the Da Vinci Code judgment, until he realised where he’d gone wrong. The BAILII version of the judgment has the seemingly random italicised ‘typos’ corrected, rendering the code invisible. If you want to see the code in all its glory, take a look at the Court Service version.


FIFA loses in Germany

IOL reports that FIFA has lost a case against Ferrero before the Federal Court in Karlsruhe. The court found that FIFA can’t stop other undertakings from using WM 2006 (which translates as World Cup 2006), WM Deutschland (World Cup Germany) and Fussball WM Deutschland (Football World Cup Germany).

The IPKat would like to see a sensible approach taken here. While it’s rather mean to stop other undertakings referring to a national event, the use of such terms in the typeface used by FIFA could wrongly suggest that the user is an official sponsor, which would mislead the public.