Facts
Richemont International SA, Villars-sur-Glâne (the plaintiff), manufactures watches of various brands, particularly under the IWC or IWC International Watch Co. Schaffhausen brand, in several branch offices. WMC Logo Concept GmbH, Schaffhausen (the defendant), established on July 17, 1997, offers watches under the designation "WMC" and uses the designations "WMC International Watch Group" and "The WMC International Watch Group Switzerland" in its advertising materials.
The plaintiff filed a lawsuit against the defendant and requested, among other things, that the defendant be prohibited from using the letter combinations "WMC" and "WMC-Schaffhausen" in its business operations to designate its business operations, as well as from labeling, advertising, or marketing watches and services related to watches with the letter combination "WMC".
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court decided that the use of the designations "WMC International Watch Group" and "The WMC International Watch Group Switzerland" by the defendant fulfills the criteria of the risk of confusion under Art. 3 lit. d UWG. Even though the acronyms "IWC" and "WMC" are not confusable when used alone, they are sufficiently similar to evoke associations. The defendant uses the "WMC" sign in a way that can be interpreted as a reference to the plaintiff's well-known "IWC" sign and its luxury watches, and is capable of establishing a mental connection to the plaintiff's products.
Furthermore, the Federal Supreme Court affirmed that the use of the letter combinations "WMC" and "WMC-Schaffhausen" by the defendant constitutes unfair exploitation of reputation within the meaning of Art. 3 lit. e UWG. Even though the acronyms "IWC" and "WMC" are not confusable when used alone, they are sufficiently similar to at least evoke…