NORWAY Trends and Developments Contributed by: Camilla Vislie, Magnus Hauge Greaker, Julie Rasmussen Solli and Amalie Hauge Pedersen, Advokatfirmaet Thommessen AS
Statistics from NIPO for 2024 According to statistics from NIPO, there has been a 9.1% reduction in the number of trade mark applications in 2024 compared to the pre - vious year. A total of 13,753 applications were received in 2024. Of these, 10,815 were sub - mitted by foreign applicants and only 2,938 by Norwegian residents. As of 9 December 2024, there are 251,551 trade marks in force in Norway, while 8,397 trade mark applications are still pending. Copyrights New decisions from the Court of Appeal regarding copyright The past year has witnessed three significant judgments from the Borgarting Court of Appeal, each shedding light on important aspects of Nor - wegian copyright law. These cases encompass a diverse range of subjects, including copyright protection in military communication technology (LB-2023-47636, the Lividi case), software and databases within the maritime sector (LB-2023- 57697, the Dataloy case), and the use of pod - cast content in journalism (LB-2023-191319, the Bodø Nu case). Collectively, these rulings provide valuable insights into how copyright is managed in vari - ous contexts, raising key questions about own - ership, usage rights, and the balance between protecting creative works and ensuring freedom The case brought by Lividi AS (Lividi) against the State, represented by the Ministry of Defence (FMA), concerned a claim to prohibit FMA from granting Kongsberg Gruppen ASA and its sub - sidiaries access to and control over the source code and the internal functionality of the Hermod of expression. The Lividi case
high threshold is justified by the strong need to keep colours available for use. Key takeaways from the decision include: • Businesses can achieve protection through use for colours through extensive, long- term, and consistent use in the marketing of a product. If this develops into a trend in Norwegian law, it will benefit market leaders by granting them a monopoly on the use of specific colours for marketing products, while smaller competitors may find it challenging to align closely within the same product cat - egory. • Even if competitors use a different shade of the same colour to market a product within the same category, such use may still consti - tute trade mark infringement if the differences are so minimal that they could be overlooked by the average consumer in a shopping con - text. • Market surveys are well-suited as evidence in cases concerning the establishment of trade mark protection through use. The decision is final, as the parties reached a set - tlement following the issuance of the judgment. Orkla subsequently submitted a new trade mark application to NIPO to register Pantone 2144 C for porous milk chocolate; however, NIPO rejected this application, contrary to the Dis - trict Court’s assessment in the dispute between Orkla and Mondelez. Orkla has appealed NIPO’s rejection to the Board of Appeal for Industrial Property Rights, meaning that the final word in this case has not been spoken. The focus on colour trade marks in Norway is expected to continue into 2025.
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