Use It Or Lose It - What Qualifies As Genuine Use?

Trade mark proprietors are often faced with the ultimatum 'use it or lose it', but when asked to provide evidence of genuine use of your mark, how far can your actual use stray from the mark as registered?

Article 15(1)(a) of EU Trade Mark Regulations (the Regulation) allows trade mark proprietors to use their marks "in a form differing in elements which do not alter the distinctive character of the mark in the form in which it was registered" and for such use to support the underlying trade mark registrations. The provision allows trade mark proprietors to modernise their marks and adapt them for different marketing and promotional conditions, as the following General Court (GC) decisions illustrate.