TechCentralTechCentral
    Facebook Twitter YouTube LinkedIn
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn YouTube
    TechCentral TechCentral
    NEWSLETTER
    • News

      Alviva shares leap higher on R3-billion take-private offer

      30 June 2022

      Datatec to sell Analysys Mason for as much as R4.1-billion

      30 June 2022

      Futuregrowth launches start-up fund, targets R600-million raise

      30 June 2022

      Eskom is killing the rand

      30 June 2022

      Eskom ramps up load shedding as crisis deepens

      30 June 2022
    • World

      Graphics card prices plummet as crypto demand dries up

      30 June 2022

      Bitcoin just had its worst quarter in a decade

      30 June 2022

      The NFT party is over

      30 June 2022

      Samsung beats TSMC to 3nm chip production

      30 June 2022

      Napster plots crypto comeback

      29 June 2022
    • In-depth

      The great crypto crash: the fallout, and what happens next

      22 June 2022

      Goodbye, Internet Explorer – you really won’t be missed

      19 June 2022

      Oracle’s database dominance threatened by rise of cloud-first rivals

      13 June 2022

      Everything Apple announced at WWDC – in less than 500 words

      7 June 2022

      Sheryl Sandberg’s ad empire leaves a complicated legacy

      2 June 2022
    • Podcasts

      How your organisation can triage its information security risk

      22 June 2022

      Everything PC S01E06 – ‘Apple Silicon’

      15 June 2022

      The youth might just save us

      15 June 2022

      Everything PC S01E05 – ‘Nvidia: The Green Goblin’

      8 June 2022

      Everything PC S01E04 – ‘The story of Intel – part 2’

      1 June 2022
    • Opinion

      Has South Africa’s advertising industry lost its way?

      21 June 2022

      Rob Lith: What Icasa’s spectrum auction means for SA companies

      13 June 2022

      A proposed solution to crypto’s stablecoin problem

      19 May 2022

      From spectrum to roads, why fixing SA’s problems is an uphill battle

      19 April 2022

      How AI is being deployed in the fight against cybercriminals

      8 April 2022
    • Company Hubs
      • 1-grid
      • Altron Document Solutions
      • Amplitude
      • Atvance Intellect
      • Axiz
      • BOATech
      • CallMiner
      • Digital Generation
      • E4
      • ESET
      • Euphoria Telecom
      • IBM
      • Kyocera Document Solutions
      • Microsoft
      • Nutanix
      • One Trust
      • Pinnacle
      • Skybox Security
      • SkyWire
      • Tarsus on Demand
      • Videri Digital
      • Zendesk
    • Sections
      • Banking
      • Broadcasting and Media
      • Cloud computing
      • Consumer electronics
      • Cryptocurrencies
      • Education and skills
      • Energy
      • Fintech
      • Information security
      • Internet and connectivity
      • Internet of Things
      • Investment
      • IT services
      • Motoring and transport
      • Public sector
      • Science
      • Social media
      • Talent and leadership
      • Telecoms
    • Advertise
    TechCentralTechCentral
    Home»In-depth»‘Cell ©’ okay for now, says top lawyer

    ‘Cell ©’ okay for now, says top lawyer

    In-depth By Editor19 August 2010
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email
    Don MacRobert

    Cell C can continue using its controversial new trademark, which includes a design that resembles the copyright symbol. There’s even a “reasonable possibility” it will be successful in registering “Cell ©” as a trademark, despite the fact that various applications it made in December 2009 were “provisionally declined” this month by the Registrar of Trademarks.

    These are the views of Don MacRobert, one of the country’s leading intellectual property and trademarks lawyers, who says the cellular operator can continue using the branding despite the registrar’s decision, which was handed down on 2 August, just two days before Cell C unveiled its new logo.

    The company’s rebranding forms part of a bigger strategy to reinvent itself in the market. It’s building a third-generation mobile network and restructuring its operations in an effort to sign up more profitable customers and to grow market share.

    According to MacRobert, the trademarks Cell C has applied for are shown in various forms, but are dominated by the world “Cell” and the copyright symbol. In some instances, the “©” is shown in a larger size compared to the word “Cell”; in others, there’s a duplication of the symbol.

    The registrar has not set out its reasons for the provisional rejection of Cell C’s application, but MacRobert says the company’s continued use of the new branding “would seem to be in order”.

    “The company will also be able to argue the matter before the registrar to try to gain acceptance for the new forms of the mark,” he says. “The refusal by the registrar probably came as something of a surprise to the applicant.”

    He says the rejection of the new trademark application is probably not because there were earlier conflicting trademark registrations, as these were already registered in word form. Rather, it’s more likely to be related to the incorporation of the “©” symbol.

    In order to be registered under the Trade Marks Act, a trademark needs to satisfy various “registrability tests”, MacRobert says. It must be capable of distinguishing between the goods or services for which the application has been made from the goods or services of another entity. This is unlikely to be the problem.

    The application more likely falls foul of section 10 of the act, which states that certain trademarks cannot be registered, including marks which consist exclusively of a sign or indication which may serve in the trade to designate certain characteristics of goods or services, or which consists exclusively of a sign or an indication which has become customary in the bona fide and established practices of the trade.

    It appears “more than likely” that Cell C’s application was provisionally rejected, in terms trademark regulations, because it contains “certain words and symbols that can’t be registered”.

    “Subject to the provisions of any other law, the registrar may refuse to accept any application upon which certain symbols or words appear, including the words ‘patent’ or ‘registered trademark’ (when this is not the case) or, more particularly, certain symbols such as ‘®’ and ‘©’ or similar combinations which may be construed to import a reference to registration.”

    MacRobert says the act clearly prohibits the registration of trademarks that incorporate the “©” symbol.

    But the registrar’s rejection should not prove insurmountable for Cell C, he says. “In the first instance, it appears the company has already started using this new ‘Cell ©’ trademark. So, use has actually commenced.”

    MacRobert says the matter needs to be dealt with more fully by the Trade Marks Office.

    “Cell C’s attorneys can attend hearings with the registrar and argue against the provisional rejection. They may contend, as Cell C’s CEO [Lars Reichelt] has already stated in public, that there is no significance in the composite ‘Cell ©’ trademark when taken as a whole resembling the copyright symbol on its own,” he says.

    “They may state that the Cell C mark has become widely known through extensive use and that this slight variation by the incorporation of the ‘©’ symbol can in no way be construed as a reference to registration of any sorts, but rather an expanded use of their trademark.”  — Duncan McLeod, TechCentral

    • Subscribe to our free daily newsletter
    • Follow us on Twitter or on Facebook
    Cell Cell C Don MacRobert Edward Nathan Sonnenbergs
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email
    Previous ArticleMTN still open to a big deal
    Next Article MTN to name Nhleko’s successor

    Related Posts

    The great crypto crash: the fallout, and what happens next

    22 June 2022

    Cell C recap meeting rescheduled after failing to reach a quorum

    21 June 2022

    Goodbye, Internet Explorer – you really won’t be missed

    19 June 2022
    Add A Comment

    Comments are closed.

    Promoted

    Billetterie simplifies interactions between law firms and clients

    30 June 2022

    Think herding cats is tricky? Try herding a cloud

    29 June 2022

    How your business can help hybrid workers effectively

    28 June 2022
    Opinion

    Has South Africa’s advertising industry lost its way?

    21 June 2022

    Rob Lith: What Icasa’s spectrum auction means for SA companies

    13 June 2022

    A proposed solution to crypto’s stablecoin problem

    19 May 2022

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    © 2009 - 2022 NewsCentral Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.