Invalidity · first instance · 2018-08-21
000010575
Contested design: 002699777-0003
Outcome
The invalidity application is upheld, the contested RCD is declared invalid, and the holder must bear the applicant’s costs fixed at EUR 750.
Show verbatim operative text
The application for a declaration of invalidity is upheld. Registered Community design No 002699777-0003 is declared invalid. The holder bears the applicant’s costs, fixed at EUR 750.
CostsHolder ordered to pay costs of €750
Parties
Applicant · invalidity challenger
Warwick GmbH & Co. Music Equipment KG
Germany (DE)
Gewerbegebiet Wohlhausen, 08258 Markneukirchen, Germany
Holder · RCD owner
Pro Stage Gear LLC
United States (US)
108 4th Avenue South, Suite 203, Franklin, TN 37064, United States of America
Represented by
Prior art cited (2)
Pedaltrain Nano pedalboard
http://pedaltrain.com · Internet Archive / pedaltrain.com · disclosed 2013-08-06
mounting board for guitar effects
US 6 459 023 B1 · United States patent · disclosed 2000-09-07
Legal grounds invoked
Argument summary
- ›Applicant sought invalidity for lack of novelty and individual character, arguing the contested pedalboard matched the earlier Pedaltrain Nano and that its essential features were technically dictated.
- ›Holder argued the prior product remained on sale but did not destroy validity, stressing different width proportions and rail spacing that created a different overall impression.
- ›The Division found the Pedaltrain Nano had been validly disclosed before the filing date through archived website evidence and the holder’s own statements and materials.
- ›Given broad designer freedom for pedalboards, the differences in rail spacing and removal of lettering were insufficient; the contested design produced the same overall impression and was invalidated.
Deciding panel
- MemberGailė SAKALAITĖ
- MemberLudmila ČELISOVA
- MemberBenjamin VAN BAVEL
Decision files
| Language | Type | Source link |
|---|---|---|
| enEnglish | original | Download original from EUIPO ↗ |
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