Puma is preparing to challenge a ruling by a Spanish arbitration tribunal that has granted the German brand full rights to its trademark in Spain, but only if Puma agreed to pay up to €98 million to its former Spanish licensee, Estudio 2000.
Puma hoped it had settled a decades-long battle for its trademark in Spain in 1995, when it signed a deal with Estudio 2000 that was meant to end their licensing agreement at the beginning of 2010. Puma had prepared for the hard-fought change-over by opening its own office in Barcelona. However, Estudio 2000 disputed Puma’s rights to take over full control of its trademark in Spain and continued to deliver Puma products, triggering the opening of an arbitration case earlier this year.
Although the tribunal’s ruling favors Puma for the ownership of the rights, the company does not want to pay the required compensation to Estudio 2000, and is therefore filing an application for the award to be declared invalid. Puma said that it had done so after a thorough legal assessment, and it believes a favorable outcome is more likely than not. The ruling on the trademark rights will be suspended until Puma’s application on the compensation is handled.
Puma had to issue an ad hoc release on the matter since the payment ordered by the arbitration ruling would have a substantial impact on its income. However, it declined to comment on further details of the ruling while the case is ongoing.
The attribution of the full Puma trademark rights to the company itself is a severe loss for Estudio 2000, a footwear manufacturer based in Elche, near Alicante. The Spanish company claimed that Puma will not be able to ship any products until the money is paid and said it is trying to find a solution for its 120 employees in Elche and others in Madrid.
Disputing this statement, Puma officials say the rulings about the ownership of the trademark and the compensation are separate, and noted their Spanish office, which went into operation last April, has already been able to sell some products under various Puma trademarks to which Estudio 2000 has no rights.
