Industrial Property Law

In addition to the similarity of signs, Article L. 713-2, 2° of the Intellectual Property Code requires that the contested sign be used for goods or services identical or similar to those for which the mark is registered. The assessment of the similarity between the goods and services requires taking into consideration all the relevant factors that characterize their relationship, in particular, t …

Similarity between products or services

In addition to the similarity of signs, Article L. 713-2, 2° of the Intellectual Property Code requires that the contested sign be used for goods or services identical or similar to those for which the mark is registered. The assessment of the similarity between the goods and services requires taking into consideration all the relevant factors that characterize their relationship, in particular, their nature, their use, whether they are competing or complementary  as well as, for the goods, the similarity of their shapes, packaging, graphical combinations , dimensions, colors, or the fact that the goods are placed on the same shelves above each other . 

Products or services are similar to the extent that, in view of the above factors, the public can, while distinguishing them, attribute a common origin to them . This is the case of two tourist accommodation services which, although based on two radically different concepts and aimed at different types of clientele, are complementary . On the other hand, cosmetic products and food supplements , shoes and clothing , finished products and intermediate products from the textile industry intended for processing , or audiovisual communication services and instant messaging services , ties, scarves, gloves, and clothing sold at the same points of sale  or miniature models of characters, animals, and furniture representative of the circus world, as well as stationery or advertising items, craft supplies, or creative materials  are not similar. The approximation in the minds of the relevant public does not simply arise from the observation that the services require both technical and artistic skills .

CA Paris, 18 May 2021, LawLex202100005678JBJ; CA Paris, 17 March 2017, LawLex201700000566JBJ; Cass. com, 20 November 2012,  LawLex202200000260JBJ.

CA Paris, 22 February 1995, LawLex200200001482JBJ.

TJ Paris, 7 November 2024, LawLex202400008827JBJ.

CA Paris, 11 February 2022, LawLex202200002850JBJ, comparing watchmaking and architecture.

T. com. 28 December 1993, LawLex200200001607JBJ.

Cass. com., 27 June 2018, LawLex202200000483JBJ; ECJ Case C-9/93 IHT Internationale Heiztechnik GmbH, Judgment of 22June 1994, LawLex200500005054JBJ.

Cass. com. 12 July 2005, LawLex202200000369JBJ.

Cass. com, 23 September 2008, LawLex202200000484JBJ, which states that there is no similarity between cosmetic products, intended to improve the aesthetics of the hair and the skin, and a food supplement, which fulfills certain dietary deficiencies and contributes to the nutritional equilibrium of the organism, without having, primarily, an aesthetic purpose.

Cass. com. 20 November 2012, LawLex202200000260JBJ.

Cass. com. 8 February 2017, LawLex202100005806JBJ.

Cass. com. 24 May 2016, LawLex202200000209JBJ.

CA Aix-en-Provence, 25 September 2024, LawLex202400007142JBJ.

Industrial Property Law

99. Similarity between products or services

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99. Similarity between products or services

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Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

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au contenu exclusif Livv – juristes d’entreprise