Judgments nº T-56/20 of Tribunal General de la Unión Europea, February 24, 2021

• Resolution Date: February 24, 2021
• Issuing Organization: Tribunal General de la Unión Europea
• Decision Number: T-56/20

(EU trade mark - Opposition proceedings - Application for the EU word mark VROOM - Earlier national word mark POP & VROOM - Relative ground for refusal - Likelihood of confusion - Article 8(1)(b) of Regulation (EU) 2017/1001) In Case T-56/20,

Bezos Family Foundation, established in Seattle, Washington (United States), represented by A. Klett, M. Schaffner and M. Lambert Maillard, lawyers,

applicant,

v

European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), represented by A. Folliard-Monguiral and V. Ruzek, acting as Agents,

defendant,

the other party to the proceedings before the Board of Appeal of EUIPO being

SNCF Mobilités, établissement public à caractère industriel et commercial, established in Saint-Denis (France),

ACTION brought against the decision of the Fifth Board of Appeal of EUIPO of 20 November 2019 (Case R 1288/2019-5), relating to opposition proceedings between SNCF Mobilités and Bezos Family Foundation,

THE GENERAL COURT (Tenth Chamber),

composed of A. Kornezov, President, K. Kowalik-Bańczyk (Rapporteur) and G. Hesse, Judges,

Registrar: A. Juhász-Tóth, Administrator,

having regard to the application lodged at the Court Registry on 3 February 2020,

having regard to the response lodged at the Court Registry on 21 April 2020,

further to the hearing on 12 November 2020,

gives the following

Judgment

Background to the dispute

1 On 6 December 2017, the applicant, Bezos Family Foundation, filed an application for registration of an EU trade mark with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2017/1001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 June 2017 on the European Union trade mark (OJ 2017 L 154, p. 1).

2 Registration as a mark was sought for the word sign VROOM.

3 The goods in respect of which registration was sought are in Class 9 of the Nice Agreement Concerning the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of the Registration of Marks of 15 June 1957, as revised and amended, and correspond to the following description: ‘Computer software, namely a mobile application for providing information and learning and educational activities and games in the field of early child development and early childhood education’.

4 The EU trade mark application was published in European Union Trade Marks Bulletin No 2018/21 of 31 January 2018.

5 On 27 April 2018, SNCF Mobilités, établissement public à caractère industriel et commercial, filed a notice of opposition pursuant to Article 46 of Regulation 2017/1001 to registration of the mark applied for in respect of the goods referred to in paragraph 3 above.

6 The opposition was based on the earlier French word mark POP & VROOM, which was filed on 4 November 2016 and registered on 3 March 2017 under No 4 312 202. The mark designates goods and services in Classes 9, 12, 35, 37, 38, 39 and 42 corresponding, for Classes 9 and 42, to the following description:

- Class 9: ‘Computer software and mobile applications for the bringing together of private individuals for car sharing and vehicle sharing purposes; Data processing equipment and computers for sending and broadcasting information to users in transit relating to transport and in particular to the management and conditions of rail, road and maritime traffic; Computer hardware and software, namely downloadable computer software for facilitating access to databases containing transport information; Computer software; Computer software, in particular for managing means of transport; Mobile applications; Multimedia; Electronic data terminals, apparatus and installations, in particular of a public, personal, portable or mobile nature; Computer software and devices for GPS navigation; Scientific apparatus and instruments; Apparatus for recording, transmission or reproduction of sound or images, in particular relating to RFID (radio-frequency identification) technology or NFC (near field communication) technology; Computer software and computer applications enabling localisation, management and reservation of car parks and parking spaces; USB charging ports; USB hardware; computer periphery devices; On-line publications in the form of reports, directories, brochures, reference material, leaflets, newsletters, newspapers, booklets, pamphlets, postcards, flyers, magazine supplements to newspapers, trade and professional magazines and books in the fields of transport, news, business, current affairs, entertainment, sport; Telecommunications terminals; Smart cards, cards with microprocessors; Magnetic, electronic and digital cards and badges; Smart cards; Magnetic, electronic and digital access cards; Magnetic, electronic and digital transport cards, in particular transport network identity cards; Credit cards, cash machine cards, payment cards; Prepayment cards; Electronic apparatus for verification of identity; Identity cards, encoded; Data encoders; Data decoders; Mechanisms for coin-operated apparatus; Scientific, photographic, optical, measuring, signalling, checking (supervision) and control apparatus and instruments; Apparatus for recording, transmission or reproduction of sound or images; Recording substrates [magnetic]; Remote terminals enabling instalments to be debited; Data processing apparatus and computers; Readers (computer), optical readers, readers of magnetic, electronic and digital cards; Smart card readers; Interactive information terminals; Remote terminals for recognising signals emitted by electronic components of a magnetic, electronic and/or digital badge or card; Electric and electronic train timetable indicators; Optical apparatus and instruments, namely spectacles, sunglasses and sports goggles; Cases adapted for mobile phones; Covers for mobile telephones; Batteries and cells; Charger; Chargers for electric batteries; Headphones; Stereo headphones; Telecommunications apparatus and equipment’;

- Class 42: ‘Computer software design; Design of computer software for processing information relating to rail, road and maritime traffic; Development (design), maintenance and repair of computer software and mobile applications for the bringing together of private individuals for car sharing and vehicle sharing purposes, downloadable computer software for accessing databases relating to transport, computer software for managing means of transport, computer software and applications for the location and reservation of car parks and parking spaces, GPS navigation devices; Development (design) of scientific apparatus and instruments, apparatus for recording, transmission, reproduction of sound or images, in particular relating to RFID (radio frequency identification) technology or NFC (near field communication) technology; Technical surveying, consultancy and advice in the field of computers for providing transportation information; Development (design) of computer software for managing means of transport; Design of computer programs for processing and supplying transportation information; Production (design) of hypertext links on a telecommunications network, and in particular on the Internet; Hosting computer sites; Research and engineering relating to transport; Research and engineering relating to the organisation of transport networks, convoys, timetables and transport conditions; Creation (design) of computer programs and/or computer software relating to transport, to the organisation and management of transport networks and to goods convoys; Research and engineering relating to the construction and management of storage premises and in particular warehouses and storage...