South African Court says competitors may continue to bid on
each other's trade marks as Google Adwords
The South Gauteng High Court (Johannesburg) has decided South
Africa's first case on the lawfulness of using a
competitor's trade mark in a Google Adwords campaign.
The court handed down judgment in the case of Cochrane Steel
Products Pty Ltd v M-Systems Group (Pty) Ltd on 29 October
2014. The matter concerned Cochrane's unregistered, but
allegedly well-known trade mark "CLEAR VU", and
M-Systems' use of the keywords "CLEARVU", "CLEAR
VU" and "CLEAR-VU" in its Adwords campaign for a
competing fencing product.
Judge Nicholls confirmed that there is nothing inherently
unlawful about using a competitor's trade mark in a manner that
is not likely to cause deception or confusion. He also held that
'leaning on', which is a form of unlawful competition
whereby one person benefits from a positive association with
another's brand or business without deceiving or
