Louis Vuitton AW09
Louis Vuitton will face Google in the European Court of Justice this week in a fight over what people see when they google a designer name, Bloomberg reports. Google is appealing a 2006 ruling that it breached Vuitton’s trademark rights.
At the moment when you search for a label or brand name on Google you are shown paid for results which include companies offering similar and fake versions of the products. Vuitton argues that the search engine should not be able to sell search terms and brand names should be exclusive to the brand which licences them.
In the UK several brands have agreed not to purchase rivals search terms.
Louis Vuitton lawyer Patrice de Cande told the court: "Google's advertisement activities have given companies which sell fake products unprecedented visibility beyond their wildest dreams."
Google lawyer argued: "Google makes money not by reason of the nature of the keyword, but by someone clicking on the keyword. The decision to click or not to click belongs to whom? Clearly to the internet user."
The hearing of the six year long fight began yesterday but a decision is not expected until early 2010.
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