Internal stucture
From the product description provided by the Canadians, it appears that the trademark is not about underwear itself, but about an internal structure in men’s underwear: “An internal fabric structure for supporting or isolating male genitalia from a user’s thighs, sold as a component feature of men’s underwear”. Whenever I read something like that, I always regret not being present when the EUIPO examiner first receives such an application on their desk.
Change the quality of one’s life for the better
Anyway, after studying the brand name and the description of the goods, the EUIPO examiner had no doubts: Life Changing Underwear is not distinctive. ‘The relevant public would simply perceive the sign ‘Life Changing Underwear’ as providing the purely laudatory information that the underwear in question have a positive impact on the wearer´s life, e.g. that they are so good and comfortable compared to normal underwear, to the point where such a good fit will make you feel better and therefor change the quality of one’s life for the better. The relevant public will not tend to see in the sign any indication of commercial origin, but merely laudatory information that serves to highlight positive aspects of the goods‘, according to the examiner. One might wonder whether the current sweltering heat wave around Alicante influenced his judgment. In any case, according to EUIPO the name Life Changing Underwear is descriptive of the product and therefore cannot be registered as a trademark.
Subjective
A pity, really. I actually find Life Changing Underwear quite a distinctive brand, a striking combination that sets expectations. I would have allowed it to be registered, both for underwear and their internal structures. But the assessment of a trademark’s distinctiveness always remains subjective, and EUIPO has the final word for now. No trademark protection for Life Changing Underwear.
Bas Kist
Banner photo by Esteban Bernal on Unsplash
