Z is a “trademark” of the Russian government.
According to EUIPO, the problem is that the letter Z is seen by consumers in the EU as a symbol of support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Z has been placed on Russian uniforms and painted on armored vehicles involved in the invasion. The letter Z, which does not exist in the Cyrillic alphabet, is also used by the Kremlin in its communications as a meme of support for the war. Outside the military context, the symbol “Z” has even become a “trademark” of the Russian government, according to EUIPO.
More refusals
The fact that IBM clearly has no intention of using this trademark in connection with the war is irrelevant. For EUIPO, the letter Z as a trademark is simply taboo, at least you can no longer get a registration for it. A quick check of the trademark register shows that EUIPO has previously also refused to register other Z trademarks.
Design does play a role
But does the registration ban apply to every Z logo, regardless of its design? In this IBM ruling, I read that fortunately, design does matter. If the stylization and typographical features of the “Z” sufficiently differ from the symbol “Z” used by Russia, registration should be possible, according to EUIPO. Frankly, I think the appearance of this ‘open’ IBM-Z is quite different from the one used by the Russians. Against that background, I think this logo could have been granted registration.
Bas Kist
