EU Court Confirms Invalidity of "PriSecco" Trademark, Upholding Prosecco Protection

"The European Union Court has upheld the invalidation of the trademark "PriSecco," rejecting the appeal from the German company Manufaktur Jörg Geiger GmbH. The court recognized that "PriSecco" evokes the well-known DOC Prosecco, as previously determined by the EUIPO's Appeals Commission. Bird & Bird represented the Prosecco Protection Consortium in this case. The trademark, registered in 2015 for non-alcoholic cocktails, was contested by the Consortium in 2020 due to its similarity to Prosecco. The court noted the strong visual and phonetic resemblance between the two names and deemed the prior existence of the "PriSecco" trademark in Germany irrelevant."

**Law Firms Involved:** Bird & Bird assisted the Consorzio di Tutela della DOC Prosecco in the recent legal proceedings. **Transaction Overview:** The European Union Court has upheld the nullity of the trademark "PriSecco," rejecting the appeal from the German company Manufaktur Jörg Geiger GmbH and recognizing the evocation of the DOC Prosecco, as previously established by the EUIPO's Board of Appeal. The trademark "PriSecco" was registered in 2015 for non-alcoholic cocktails, but the Consorzio contested its registration in 2020, citing its similarity to the DOC Prosecco. The EUIPO declared the trademark null in 2022, a decision that was reaffirmed by the Board of Appeal in 2024, and the final appeal to the European Union Court was also dismissed. **Legal Team:** The Bird & Bird team was led by partner Giovanni Galimberti and included Trademark Attorney Alessandro Sciarra, Associate Francesca Fili, and partner Rita Tardiolo.

EU Court Confirms Invalidity of "PriSecco" Trademark, Upholding Prosecco Protection

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