Google wins 'major victory' over brands in AdWords case
The Court of Justice of the European Union has today ruled that Google’s paid-for search advertising service does not infringe the trademark protection major brand owners such as Louis Vuitton.
The case came about following a complaint from The LVMH Group which owns brands such as Louis Vuitton as well as Moet & Chandon and Dior, which said that Google was acting illegally by allowing rival companies to use their brand names to act as a an AdWord trigger for online advertising.
The ruling means that Google will be allowed to continue to allow smaller advertisers to use the familiarity consumers have with larger brands in targeting potential custom.
The brands also complained that the service aided the promotion of counterfeit good.
Mark Blair, partner at Marks & Clerk Solicitors, said that the ruling was “a major victory” for Google that the use of the AdWord service did not infringe trademark protection and will force brands to spend more money to outbid their rivals to maintain a dominant position online.
It is understood that around 97 percent of Google’s revenue comes from online advertising.
Blair continued to say that the ruling was “not a complete blow” for brand owners.
“The Court of Justice has not given a ‘carte-blanche’ to this activity. Instead, it has made explicit that advertisers could themselves potentially be liable for infringement, in particular where an advertisement is unclear as to who is behind it, and it is down to the national courts to determine accordingly. Advertisers using the service will now need to tread very carefully indeed. Today’s ruling may to an extent ring-fence Google from claims by brand owners, but it will not close the door on future litigation in this area. We may in fact see more legal action, but directed at the advertisers themselves on a case-by-case basis at the national courts. If that does happen, we may see knock-on economic implications for Google.”
The decision will come as a relief to Google, which endured a miserable February of bad press and legal issues against its use of search while user’s questioned their privacy being invaded by the terms and conditions of the search engine giant.