McDonald’s lost a European Union legal battle to keep its “Big Mac” trademark beyond its iconic hamburgers in a ruling from the EU General Court today.
The Goliath of the fast food world lost out to a complaint from Supermac’s, a smaller Irish chain as famous for its fish and chips as its burgers. It sought to limit the McDonald’s trademark in the EU which it argued had hampered it from expanding across Europe.
EU judges said McDonald’s “has not proved that the contested mark has been put to genuine use” for other products like chicken sandwiches or services tied to managing restaurants or takeaway options, according to a statement from the court today.
Their backing for Supermac’s vindicates the Galway-based company’s near-decade-long trademark battle with McDonald’s.
Supermac’s managing director Pat McDonagh said the ruling was a “vindication of small businesses everywhere that stand up to powerful global entities,” according to an emailed statement.
“We have been saying for years that they have been using trademark bullying,” he said. “We knew when we took on this battle that it was a David versus Goliath scenario.”
The company had argued that McDonald’s shouldn’t have the exclusive right to use the “Big Mac” phrase for other menu items like chicken dishes or restaurant services because it hadn’t put the trademark to use for additional products for at least five years.
The Irish chain took its “Big Mac” beef to the EU court last year to overturn a 2022 decision from EU intellectual property office that only partially canceled McDonald’s rights over the phrase but still upheld it for services and other potential menu items.
General Court rulings can be appealed to the EU’s top court, the Court of Justice.
The case is T 58/23 Supermac’s vs. EUIPO – McDonald’s International Property (BIG MAC).
This article has been updated with Supermac’s comment.
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