The Commission of the Territorial administration of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) for St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region has found the activities of OJSC “May» to constitute unfair competition

On 27.10.2005, the Commission of the Territorial Administration of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) for St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region found the activities of OJSC “Company “May» regarding the issue and realization of tea, copying of the production of LLC “Orimi Trade” and the acquisition and use of exclusive rights to combined trademarks, imitating the external appearance of packs of tea distributed by LLC “Orimi Trade” to be unfair competition.

The basis for administrative consideration was an appeal by LLC “Orimi Trade”, one of the largest producers and suppliers of tea in the Russian Federation.

“Orimi Trade” indicated that as of 1995, the teas “Princess Gita”, Princess Nuri”, “ Princess Kandi” and “Princess Yava» have retailed on the Russian tea market in original packaging, and enjoy great consumer popularity.

LCC “Orimi Trade” received a patent to an industrial sample in the established order, including the external appearance of the packaging of the tea under the general name “GITA”, the packaging of which, as was established at the hearing, is similar to the point of confusion with the packaging of the production of LLC “Orimi Trade.” Moreover, the appearance on the market of teas from the “Company “May” in such packaging was accompanied by the registration of the basic elements of such packages as trademarks.

However, commencing with the fall of 2004, i.e at the time when the production of “Orimi Trade” was at the peak of its popularity, OJSC “Company “May” began to issue several kinds of tea under the general name “GITA” in packages similar to the point of confusion with those of LLC “Orimi Trade.” Moreover, the issue of such teas on the market by “Company “May” was accompanied by the registration of the basic elements of the packaging as trademarks.

D.I. Seryogin, the head of the intellectual property department of the law firm “YUST», represented the interests of LLC “Orimi Trade” at the above-mentioned hearing of the matter by the Commission, and stressed the deviation of the “Company May’s” conduct from not only Russian legislation, but also fundamental norms of international law, such as article 10.bis of the Paris Convention, that qualifies as unfair competition all acts that can create confusion regarding an enterprise, the products or industrial and commercial activities of a competitor. Moreover, the attention of the Commission was drawn to the content of open information sources regarding generally accepted principles of international law, that acknowledge the systematic copying of a competitor’s achievements to be unfair competition.

On 10.11.2005, the Commission rendered its decision in full and ordered the “Company “May” to cease placing teas in packaging that copies “Princess Gita” CNC, “Princess Nuri” Otborny (Select) and “Princess Nuri:” Vysokogorny (High Mountain) on the market.

The matter in question is of interest from the point of view of the interaction between the demands of the law on trademarks and antimonopoly legislation, and also the practice of the struggle against the copying of competitors’ commercial achievements.