EU Decision on Rubik’s Cube Attempts To Solve Patent, Trademark Quandary

Nov. 26, 2014, 5:00 AM UTC

The General Court of the European Union rejected claims that the three-dimensional graphic design of a Rubik’s Cube should not be allowed a trademark on the basis that it involves a technical solution that can only be patented.

The ruling (T-450/09) establishes legal definitions regarding the differences between a trademark and a patent, while rejecting an appeal by German toy company Simba Toys GmbH to force the EU trademark agency to revoke a Rubik’s Cube trademark.

The mark is issued to a U.K. company that manages the intellectual property rights to the three-dimensional puzzle invented in 1974.

Technical Solution.

The ...

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