Case Overview:

Hema Supermarket, an affiliate of Alibaba, established the strawberry brand "葲荭" (Quán Hóng - No Inherent meaning) and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. filed a trademark application for "葲荭" (Quán Hóng) encompassing "fresh strawberries" and other goods items. The Trademark Office determined that "葲荭" (Quán Hóng) might be construed as indicative of a specific strawberry variety and would not be easily recognized as a trademark specifically for fresh strawberries. Consequently, the term lacked the requisite distinctiveness as stipulated by Article 11(3) of the Trademark Law. Furthermore, it was argued that utilizing "葲荭" (Quán Hóng) on items beyond fresh strawberries could create consumer confusion concerning the essential attributes of the products, aligning with the circumstances outlined in Article 10(7). Accordingly, the application was refused. Both the first-instance court and the Beijing Intellectual Property Court upheld the Trademark Office's decision.Subsequent to the first-instance verdict, CHISPO pursued an appeal to the Beijing High People's Court. Ultimately, the court acknowledged that "葲荭" (Quán Hóng) constitutes a fabricated term, and neither of its characters bears resemblance to or connection with strawberries. Despite auditory similarities to "全红" (Quán Hóng - All Red), evidence substantiated that the public would not interpret "葲荭" (Quán Hóng) as denoting a new strawberry variety. Thus, the use of "葲荭" (Quán Hóng) on fresh strawberries carried a distinctive nature.Furthermore, media references denoted "葲荭" (Quán Hóng) as Alibaba's brand, "葲荭草莓" (Quán Hóng Cǎo Méi - Quan Hong Strawberries). Although a homophone of "全红" (Quán Hóng – All Red), no substantive correlation existed between the two. As a result, the CNIPA preliminarily approved the registration of the "葲荭" (Quán Hóng) trademark.

Legal Commentary:

The formulation of the brand name "葲荭" (Quán Hóng) stemmed from a utilization of a rare homophonic resemblance to "全红" (Quán Hóng – All Red). However, as "葲荭" (Quán Hóng) is a coined word devoid of inherent linkage to strawberries, the initial trademark application was declined by the Trademark Office. In this instance, CHISPO presented extensive evidence from lexicons, national standards, authoritative reference materials, and the actual usage of "葲荭草莓" (Quán Hóng Cǎo Méi - Quan Hong Strawberries) to establish the absence of any strawberry-related connotation with "葲荭" (Quán Hóng). CHISPO also refuted the proposition that "葲荭" (Quán Hóng) amounted to a homophonic representation of "全红" (Quán Hóng – All Red). The court of second instance accepted CHISPO’s arguments, effectively averting the classification of the "葲荭" (Quán Hóng) mark as a generic name and validating its distinctiveness and association with the Alibaba's brand.