Europe, Color Trademarks

The Court of Justice of the European Communities ruled on May 6th, 2003 that a color per se will only possess distinctive character and will be registrable when the color can be represented graphically in a way that is clear, precise, self-contained, easily accessible, intelligible, durable, and objective. Reproduction on paper does not satisfy these criteria as the color may deteriorate over time. The President of the OHIM explained that Community trademarks are stored electronically, thus overcoming the limitations of paper. Nevertheless, the Office recommends that indication of the color should include a designation with an internationally recognized identification code.