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Classification practice harmonised

In the course of implementing the Harmonised Database (HDB), it became clear that classification practices of the national trade mark offices in Europe, to a certain extent, differed considerably from each other and from the practice of the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO): The offices accepted and interpreted various terms of goods and services differently. The establishment of the HDB database has succeeded in achieving a largely consistent approach to the classification of goods and services, which goes beyond the principles of the Nice Classification, and a harmonisation of the interpretation and acceptance of some 73,000 goods and service terms. The harmonised classification practice is set out in the current version of the "Common Communication on the Common Practice on the Acceptability of Classification Terms and the General Indications of the Nice Class Headings".

Interpretation of the Nice class headings

Within the framework of the Europe-wide harmonisation of the classification, convergence on the interpretation of the Nice class headings was also achieved. Following the CJEU’s judgment "IP Translator" ( C-307/10 of 19 June 2012), the class headings were examined with regard to whether the general indications are sufficiently clear and precise to enable the competent authorities as well as the economic operators to determine the extent of trade mark protection on the basis of these general indications alone. The outcome was that five terms of the class headings were deemed to be too vague. Please refer to the "Common Communication on the Common Practice on the Acceptability of Classification Terms and the General Indications of the Nice Class Headings".

Anyone using class headings of the Nice Classification obtains protection only for descriptions that cover the literal meaning of the class headings. Some national trade mark offices in Europe had a different practice with regard to this issue. The "Common Communication on the Interpretation of Scope of Protection of Nice Class Headings (formerly Implementation of 'IP Translator')" contains a complete overview of the practices of all IP offices in Europe before and after the "IP Translator" judgment.

Uniform rules become manifest in Trade Mark Law Modernisation Act

The change in the classification practice at the DPMA, in particular through its Europe-wide harmonisation and the case law of the CJEU, has now become manifest in the EU Trademarks Directive (in particular Article 39) and the concomitant Trade Mark Law Modernisation Act (Markenrechtsmodernisierungsgesetz, coming into force on 14 January 2019). The rules governing the classification of goods and services are reflected in a special way in the revised legal provisions of Section 20 (2), (3) and (5).

Last updated: 22 August 2022