Old brand 'likely to win trademark case'

A centennial Chinese brand is very likely to win a landmark lawsuit case over a German firm that rush-registered its trademark, a Chinese official said yesterday.

Wangzhihe Food Group, producer of the popular Chinese food bean curd under the brand name Wangzhihe, may get the trademark back in Germany tomorrow, when the Munich High Court makes a ruling, Vice-Minister of State Administration for Industry and Commerce Li Jianchang said.

The case dates back to July 2006, when the Chinese firm wanted to register in Germany, only to find that Germany-based OKAI had already registered its trademark.