AGRI-LINK - 216609

Administrative Decision Number216609
Date23 January 2006
opponentLINK INTERCHANGE NETWORK LIMITED
SectionTrade Marks Act, 1996 - 2003-2007
1
Decision in Hearing
IN THE MATTER OF an application for registration of Trade Mark No. 216609 and
in the matter of an Opposition thereto.
GLANBIA PLC Applicant
LINK INTERCHANGE NETWORK LIMITED Opponent
The application
1. On 23 December, 1999, Glanbia plc, an Irish public limited company, of Glanbia
House, Kilkenny, Co. Kilkenny made application (No. 1999/04513) to register the
words AGRI-LINK as a trade mark in respect of the following specification of
services:
Class 35: Business information services.
Class 36: Financial information services.
2. The application was accepted for registration and advertised accordingly under
No. 216609 in Journal No. 1900 on 4 October, 2000.
3. Notice of Opposition to the registration of the mark pursuant to Section 43 of the
Act was filed on 3 January, 2001 by Link Interchange Network Limited, a British
company of Link House, Hornbeam Business Park, Harrogate, North Yorkshire,
HG28PA, England. The Applicant filed a counter-statement on 11 April, 2001
and evidence was, in due course, filed by the parties under Rules 20, 21, 22 and 23
4. The matter became the subject of a hearing before me, acting for the Controller,
on 1 December, 2005. The parties were notified on 10 January, 2006 that I had
decided to uphold the opposition and refuse registration of the mark in respect of
the services in Class 36 but to dismiss the opposition and allow the application to
2
proceed to registration in respect of the services in Class 35. I now state the
grounds of my decision and the materials used in arriving thereat.
Notice of Opposition
5. In its Notice of Opposition the Opponent claims that it is the proprietor of the
trade mark LINK, which it has used extensively in respect of financial services,
banking services, credit and debit cards, automatic teller machines and related
goods and services and that it has a substantial reputation under the mark in
Ireland. It states that it has applied to register the trade marks LINK and LINK
logo1 as Community Trade Marks under Nos. 198036 and 198002, respectively,
both of which applications are dated 1 April, 19962. It then specifies its grounds
of opposition to the present application for registration, namely, that the
application offends against the provisions of the following Sections of the Act:
- Section 6(1) – not a trade mark as defined in the Act,
- Section 8(1)(b) – mark devoid of any distinctive character,
- Section 8(3)(b) – mark deceptive in nature,
- Section 8(4)(a) – use of mark prohibited by law,
- Section 8(4)(b) – application for registration made in bad faith,
- Sections 10(1) and 10(2) – mark similar to Opponent’s earlier
mark and to be registered in respect of identical/similar services
so that there exists a likelihood of confusion,
- Section 10(3) – use of mark would take unfair advantage of, or
be detrimental to, the distinctive character or reputation of
Opponent’s mark,
- Section 10(4)(a) – use of the mark liable to be prevented by law
protecting an unregistered trade mark,
- Sections 37(2) and 42(2) – requirements for registration not met
as Applicant does not have a bona fide intention of using the
mark in relation to the specified services.
1 See Appendix 1
2 and both of which have since proceeded to registration

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