"From the region. For the region" is common property
Migros wants to have the slogan «From the region. For the region»—which it uses to promote regional products—registered as a trademark. After the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property rejected the application to register the word mark, the retail giant has taken the matter to the Federal Administrative Court.
The application has been pending since 2009, Migros told the SDA news agency. According to the company, it wants to claim the slogan for itself because it has used it intensively for more than ten years. However, the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IPI) has ruled that it is a public domain.
Words that describe a product should remain freely usable for all market participants, explains the IPI on its website. The term "comfortable", for example, may therefore be used for all office chairs, and all bakers may advertise with the term "bread".
While the decision for the slogan "For the region. From the region" is now before the Federal Administrative Court, the graphic that forms part of the slogan is already protected as a figurative mark. The combination of the graphic with the slogan is also protected.
(Image: Migros.ch)
