Invalidity appeal · Board of Appeal · 2020-06-17
R0297/2019-3
Contested design: 001253876-0003
Outcome
The appeal is dismissed and the invalidity applicant is ordered to bear the design holder's costs.
Show verbatim operative text
1. Dismisses the appeal; 2. Orders the invalidity applicant to bear the costs incurred by the design holder.
CostsApplicant ordered to pay costs
Parties
Applicant · invalidity challenger
TrekStor GmbH
Germany (DE)
Berliner Ring 7, 64625 Bensheim, Germany
Represented by
Holder · RCD owner
ZAGG Incorporated
United States (US)
3855 South 500 West, Suite J, Salt Lake City, Utah 84115, United States of America
Represented by
Prior art cited (1)
Drawings/sketches allegedly created by Mr Jia in July/August 2010, claimed to be a copyright-protected work under German law underlying the contested RCD (iPad keyboard case); submitted via an assignment agreement dated 5 July 2011
Assignment of rights agreement between Speedy Mega/Tosenta and TrekStor, 5 July 2011
Legal grounds invoked
Argument summary
- ›TrekStor (invalidity applicant/appellant) argued that RCD 1253876-0003 (protective cover for iPad with keyboard) constituted an unauthorised use of copyright-protected drawings created by Mr Jia in summer 2010 and assigned to TrekStor via a chain of transfers.
- ›ZAGG (design holder) countered that no pre-filing copyright work was identified or proven, the assignment agreement post-dated the RCD, German courts had held the drawings lacked copyright protection, and TrekStor was not the proper copyright holder under German law.
- ›The Board found TrekStor failed to identify a copyright-protected work, submit the actual drawings, establish German copyright protection or the chain of title; the sole evidence (the 2011 agreement) post-dated the RCD and was ambiguous.
- ›Appeal dismissed; on all counts TrekStor failed to substantiate existence of a protected work, authorship, and entitlement under Article 25(1)(f) CDR.
Deciding panel
- ChairTh. M. Margellos
- RapporteurH. Salmi
- MemberC. Rusconi
- RegistrarH. Dijkema
Decision files
| Language | Type | Source link |
|---|---|---|
| deDeutsch (de) | machine translated | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
| esespañol (es) | machine translated | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
| frfrançais (fr) | machine translated | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
| ititaliano (it) | machine translated | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
| enEnglish | original | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
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