Not only must a manufacturer of products consider whether the
packaging would constitute trade mark or copyright infringement,
but also whether the get-up of the product will be too similar to
that of a competitor.
In a recent case Nivea sued the producers of a shower gel
product which was branded CONNIE. The products relevant to this
matter are copied below, with the product complained of shown on
the left.
Nivea complained that the CONNIE get-up borrowed from its stable
of distinctive logos and features, both past and present, so as to
create a composite that is deceptive to the average
consumer.
Central to Nivea's case is a comparative pictorial exercise
done in relation to the CONNIE product and the three recent get-ups
of Nivea's shower gels (as shown in the image above).
