In the dispute over the design of a shoe, the sporting goods manufacturer Puma suffered a defeat before the EU court. A registered Puma design was rightly declared invalid by the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), the judges in Luxembourg decided. Since the Barbadian-American singer Rihanna had been wearing shoes with a similar pattern for a long time before registration, it was clear that the design in question was no longer new and could therefore be declared invalid, said the judges.
The EUIPO made its decision at the request of the Dutch company Handelsmaatschappij J. van Hilst (HJVH). Puma then sued the EU court. Registered designs – experts speak of so-called design patents – are intended to protect against imitation. To do this, they must be new when they are registered.
It’s about white Puma sneakers with a thick black sole
For the application, HJVH submitted photos from Rihanna’s Instagram account from December 2014, which related to Rihanna’s appointment as Puma’s new creative director. In these photos, the pop star wore a pair of white Puma sneakers with a thick black sole. The judges ruled that these photos clearly showed that the essential features of the shoes were visible before the design was registered. Puma argued that no one was interested in Rihanna’s shoes at the time and therefore the design was not noticed.
But the judges didn’t agree: Rihanna was already a world-famous pop star back then. Accordingly, her fans and fashion experts had developed a particular interest in the shoes and their design at this point. The decision can still be appealed to the highest European court, the ECJ.