In a major victory for Lego, the company won its battle for trademark as a European Union court ruled in the toy maker's favour. The court ruled that the company's mini-figures remain classed as protected shapes, Mashable reported. w
A Lancashire-based toy manufacturer, Best-Lock, had appealed against the trademark protection (of Lego) so they could be allowed to manufacture similar products that are Lego-compatible toys, which it already produces. It had rested its case on the idea of patent protection, according to which the company can protect its technological solutions for a limited period (20 years) only. Once the patent protection expires, the technology can be used by everyone.
The toy manufacturer pointed out that the shape of Lego’s little wmen and women minifigures is a technical characteristic and argued that the shapes are just toy building blocks. Lego's competitor wanted to produce cheaper men and women minifigures, said the report.
The judges, however, found that key elements of Lego figures, such as head, legs and body, are not used to join the toy blocks, therefore, serve no technical function. These special shapes are designed to give the product a distinctive design and features, and hence, can be protected by a trademark registration.
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