McDonald’s loses trademark dispute: Now everyone can offer their own Big Mac

It is one of those David-versus-Goliath stories, there is in the economy. Local businesses prevail against large corporations. An Irish chain called Supermac has challenged McDonald’s trademark rights to the Big Mac – and won. The Big Mac of trademark law is now, so to speak, fair game.

So very small s is not Supermac’. The chain was founded in 1978 and has over a hundred Restaurants that are spread over the whole island of Ireland – including Northern Ireland. The menu reads like a Fast-Food Restaurants. There are burgers of different sizes: one Pattie, two and even three. The one with two Patties and three slices of Bread of the Mighty Mac. And this Mighty Mac was now obviously too powerful for McDonald’s.

“trademark bullying”

McDonald’s was the Burger names were similar to those of their burgers. Supermac’s blade like a Big Mac, it said. Therefore, the company has prevented the Expansion of Supermac’s in other European countries. Supermac’s did not want to submit to it any longer and filed a motion for withdrawal of the Big Mac trademark protection. That was on 11. April 2017. The Irish speak of “trademark bullying”, the McDonald’s run.

The office of the European Union intellectual property (EUIPO) has agreed with this Interpretation now. The decision was taken on 11. January will be announced. The trademark protection for the Big Mac is retroactive to 11. April 2017, is repealed. In the explanatory Memorandum explains that trademarks were only protected if they were actually used. So they wanted to prevent that companies have brands to protect, not to harm only to competitors. McDonald’s would have had to demonstrate that it has used in the past five years, this brand in Europe.