Brussels – The European Court on Wednesday rejected the request of Ukrainian border guards to register a trademark “Russian warship, go fuck yourself”, seeing it as a political message that is not considered a commercial indication.
The phrase went viral after being shouted by a Ukrainian border guard on the small Snake Island to a ship asking him to surrender, on the first day of the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022.
The Ukrainian administration hoped to register this trademark at the European level for a wide range of products, as well as for publishing, educational, leisure, and sports services.
But the Intellectual Property Office opposed it, and the Ukrainians took the matter to the European Court of Justice.
The phrase is a “political message” that will be “associated” with “Russian aggression. (…) It will therefore not be perceived by the pertinent public as an indication of the commercial origin of the products and services it designates,” the Court ruled in a judgment. (November 13, 2024)
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