McDonald’s (MCD) has been fighting a legal battle against an Irish takeaway firm called Supermac’s for almost a decade. However, a recent court hearing in the EU has ruled in favour of the Irish company and will affect how McDonald’s markets its Big Mac burgers.
McDonald’s Loses Court Battle Over Big Mac Name
The story began in 2015, when Supermac executives made their first move to register the chain’s name in the EU, with the idea of expanding from Ireland into mainland Europe. The American fast-food chain opposed this idea, claiming it would confuse consumers as the name is too similar to Big Macs.
While MCD had the first victory when Supermac’s couldn’t register many of their menu items, the Irish firm hit back by filing with the EU Intellectual Property Office to try and end McDonald’s exclusive right to use the Big Mac name in the region. They stated that the American giant was using trademark intimidation and hadn’t correctly put the name to continuous use over a period of five years.
The European Court of Justice has now declared in favour of Supermac’s. On Wednesday, they confirmed that they were taking Big Mac off their list of trademarked restaurant names and would also stop MCD from using it on chicken burgers.
The ECJ pointed out in their ruling that:
the evidence which was submitted by McDonald’s does not provide any indication of the extent of use of the mark in connection with those goods.
Supermac’s has a similar case pending in the UK that would potentially allow them to expand into the British market.
