The Irish-owned fast food chain has seen its plans to open outlets across Europe ruined by an EU ruling upholding McDonald’s opposition to such expansion.
After a lengthy legal battle, the American fast-food giant has come out victorious in its bid to curtail its Irish competitor’s ambitions.
In a 24-page ruling, the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (OHIM) upheld McDonald’s objections on the basis that consumers may come to believe that “Supermac’s” may be a newer version of a “Big Mac”, originating from the same business, and thus may become confused.
Supermac’s had said that both it and McDonald’s had been trading here in Ireland for many years, and no confusion between the two ever arose. However, the claims were turned down as McDonald’s trade marks were registered long before the Irish chain’s.
The ruling also states that, while the actual brand name “Supermac’s” may be used across Europe, the brand could not sell meat, fish, poultry, chicken nuggets, chips, onion rings or hamburgers under it.
The ruling now also puts in jeopardy Supermac’s intended expansion into Australia, another contested ground were McDonald’s wishes to keep its dominance on the fast food market.