Nestlé's attempt to get the shape of its Kit Kat candy bar protected may have soured in Europe.
The Vevey, Switzerland-based food company applied in 2010 to register the four-fingered shape of its chocolate confection as a trademark in Europe. Kit Kats have been sold in this shape since 1935.
The UK trademarks registry turned down the application to protect the shape in Britain in 2013, following an opposition from Mondelez International’s Cadbury unit. Earlier that year, Nestlé successfully opposed Cadbury’s attempt to obtain a registration for the purple colour on its chocolate-bar wrappers.
Nestlé appealed the rejection of its UK application to the European Union’s top court.
An advisor to the Luxembourg-based court said that the appeal should fail. Advocate General Melchior Wathelet delivered the non-binding opinion, which the court usually follows.
News by Bloomberg, edited by ESM
