On June 26-28, PRV attended a meeting, hosted by OHIM, within the Convergence Programme. The theme of the meeting was a harmonized practice for the classification of goods and services. Some twenty of the EU Member States are taking part in an ongoing project for drafting a new structure (taxonomy) of goods and services within the existing framework of the Nice Agreement. The aim is to facilitate future filing of trade mark applications with regard to selecting the goods and services required for attaining a certain scope of protection.

A related item on the agenda of the meeting was the recent ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union in the IP Translator case (C-307/10) and the measures which may need to be taken by the respective trade mark Office to comply with the judgment. This discussion will continue during the months to come.

At present, the PRV practice on the scope of protection for class headings remains unchanged. A class heading will be perceived as meaning what it says, i.e. in accordance with its linguistic meaning and nothing more. Applicants requesting a wider or more precise scope of protection are urged to submit specifications in which such goods or services are clearly indicated.