On October 28, 2008, the Paris Court of First Instance took the view that whereas both signs were evocative of products aiming to fight acne, CONTRACNE intellectually conveyed the idea of opposition (“Contre” meaning “against”) whereas CURACNE made reference to a treatment. The marks were also regarded as orally dissimilar and as visually different in length. We view this decision as grounded in reason, considering that consumers focus more on radicals, and that ACNE is not distinctive.
