The 9th Civil Chamber of the Regional Court Munich I, in a judgment issued on February 11, 2009, prohibited a brewery from advertising the beer it produces in radio spots or otherwise with
"Fresh, clean, pure, new German you say clean and exactly where do you think words like Klinsmann come from ...."
to advertise.
The former national football player and current coach of FC Bayern had not consented to such advertising using his name and was unwilling to tolerate it. The subject of the legal dispute was solely claims for injunctive relief, not also claims for damages due to the use of his name.
In court, the parties disputed, among other things, which Mr. Klinsmann was actually referred to in the commercial. The brewery attempted to convince the court that a Mr. “Cleansman” was mentioned in the spot, and it was merely about the purity of the beer. Thus, a Mr. Cleansman was intended as a synonym for “clean/pure,” and not “THE” Mr. Klinsmann.
However, the Regional Court Munich I did not follow this argumentation by the brewery and prohibited the brewery from advertising the beer it produces with the contested text. The Regional Court considered it proven that Mr. Klinsmann's naming rights were infringed by the contested advertisement.
Judgment of the Regional Court Munich I, File number: 9 O 16992/08; not yet legally binding
Source: Press Release of the Regional Court Munich I
Goldberg Rechtsanwälte
Attorney Michael Ullrich, LL.M. (Information Law)
Specialist Lawyer for Information Technology Law (IT Law)
Email: info@goldberg.de
