The Big Mac case has enjoyed considerable publicity
– many publications have reported on it, including World
IP Review. The decision shines a spotlight on some important
aspects of trade mark law.
In this case, an Irish company called Supermac's applied for
the cancellation of the EU trade mark registration for Big Mac
(belonging to McDonald's) on the basis of non-use. This
registration covered classes 29 and 30 (the food classes), as well
as class 42 (the class covering fast food services). The
application for cancellation was successful, with the Cancellation
Division of the European Union Intellectual Property Office
("EUIPO") holding that McDonald's
had failed to establish genuine use of the trade mark Big Mac in
the EU for a period of at least five years.
