Facts
The Betriebsaktiengesellschaft Vereinsdruckerei Bern (hereinafter: Vereinsdruckerei) was, based on a contract existing since 1890 with the Einwohnergemeinde der Stadt Bern (hereinafter: Einwohnergemeinde), the manufacturer and publisher of the free newspaper "Stadtanzeiger Bern" or "Anzeiger für die Stadt Bern", which in particular contained the official announcements of the City of Bern. On December 15, 1994, the Vereinsdruckerei terminated the contract, apparently with the intention of negotiating a new contract. Thereupon, the Einwohnergemeinde put the advertising contract out to tender among several Bern publishing houses and decided on the offer of "Der Bund Verlag AG, Bern".
Subsequently, a dispute arose between the Vereinsdruckerei and the Einwohnergemeinde as to who had the right to use the designations "Stadtanzeiger Bern" and "Anzeiger für die Stadt Bern". On September 30, 1994, the Vereinsdruckerei deposited the figurative mark "Stadtanzeiger Bern" and on March 23, 1995, the word mark "Anzeiger für die Stadt Bern". On May 2, 1995, its general meeting resolved to change the company's name to "Stadtanzeiger Bern AG", which, however, could not be registered by the Commercial Register Office due to a precautionary order of the Einwohnergemeinde.
On November 29, 1995, the Einwohnergemeinde filed a lawsuit against the Vereinsdruckerei with the Commercial Court of the Canton of Bern. It demanded that the Vereinsdruckerei be prohibited, under threat of penalty, from using in business transactions any designations that combine the components "Stadt Bern", "Bern Stadt", "stadtbernisch" or "städtisch" (the latter together with the place name "Bern") with the term "Anzeiger". Alternatively, it applied for a prohibition for the Vereinsdruckerei to use the signs "Stadtanzeiger Bern" and "Anzeiger für die Stadt Bern" in business transactions. In addition, it demanded the transfer of the figurative mark "Stadtanzeiger Bern" and the word mark "Anzeiger für die Stadt Bern" to the Einwohnergemeinde.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court dismisses the appeal of the Vereinsdruckerei and confirms the judgment of the Commercial Court, which partially upheld the claims of the Einwohnergemeinde.
The Commercial Court correctly assumed that there…