ARTICLE · 17 MAY 2016

AdWords: We're All On The Same Page

ENS

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A recent Australian decision on keyword usage of a registered trade mark is in line with decisions in many other countries, including South Africa.

South AfricaIntellectual Property

Delene Bertasso

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A recent Australian decision on keyword usage of a registered trade mark is in line with decisions in many other countries, including South Africa.

The facts in the case of Veda Advantage Limited v Malouf Group Enterprises (Pty) Ltd (2016) FCA 255 were straightforward. Veda is a company that compiles credit reports and has trade mark registrations for the trade mark Veda in class 36 for financial services. Malouf is a company that helps people remove their negative credit ratings. In the course of its business, Malouf used a number of keywords (think Google AdWords) that incorporated the trade mark Veda. These keywords located sponsored links (advertisements) that also incorporated the trade mark Veda in their headings.

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