LONDON: Jaguar Land Rover lost a UK court bid to get the trademark rights for the shape of its iconic Defender SUV, freeing billionaire Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos Group to go ahead with the Grenadier off-road vehicle.
The judge upheld the findings by the IP Office that while differences in design may appear significant to some specialists, they"may be unimportant, or may not even register, with average consumers.”, similar in appearance to the Land Rover Defender, is a rugged four-wheel drive vehicle that evokes African safaris and excursions through the Australian outback.
The case was first reported by the Telegraph. JLR said in a statement that it was disappointed by the ruling and that the Defender’s shape has been trademarked in several markets.