Chocolate giant Cadbury has lost a bitter courtroom battle with arch rival Nestle over the colour purple.
The five year trademark row saw Nestle win the right to use it’s competitor’s iconic Dairy Milk shade for its own products.
The landmark ruling at the Court of Appeal last Friday has opened the floodgates as big brands to supermarket labels can now cash in with lookalike choccie bars.
Cadbury lost the legal test case after three judges ruled its distinctive purple packaging could not be registered as a trademark because it lacked “specificity”.
The ruling is a massive blow to Cadbury which first used the colour more than 100 years ago as a tribute to Queen Victoria.
Known affectionately by chocoholics as Cadbury purple - the tint Pantone 2865c - has been at the centre of three legal rows with Swiss company Nestle, with Cadbury winning two but unexpectedly losing the last one.
Overturning a previous High Court ruling in Cadbury’s favour, appeal judge Sir John Mummery said it would be unfair to give the Birmingham chocolate exclusive rights to the colour.
He added that a colour trademark would give “a competitive advantage to Cadbury” and put “Nestle and its other competitors at a disadvantage.”
Cadbury, which was taken over by American firm Kraft in a £11.5 billion deal in 2010, is now owned by holding company Mondalez.
Nestle, however, welcomed the decision and said: “We believe this was the right outcome from a legal perspective”.
