IP Newsletter | Summer/Fall 2014
	TRADEMARK & DESIGN
	SPA Loses Distinctiveness in Korean Cosmetic Industry
	On September 4, 2014, the Supreme Court confirmed the Patent Court's recent ruling that the term SPA is no longer distinctive for cosmetics in Korea, and has not been since at least 2012 (Supreme Court Case No. 2014Hu1020). This decision is significant because the Supreme Court previously recognized in 2003 that the term SPA had been distinctive in the Korean cosmetic industry around 1999. The subject of the action was the HAIR SPA mark owned by a major cosmetic company, which was found invalid despite the fact the same company owns many registrations for SPA-inclusive marks in Korea. The Patent Court noted in its decision that in the current Korean market, many cosmetic companies use the term SPA in a descriptive manner to express the moisturizing effect of their products, many cosmetic companies also operate spa facilities where the term SPA is used in connection with their services, and consumers frequently use expressions such as "SPA COSMETIC" to describe certain types of moisturizing cosmetics. As a result, Korean consumers recognize and understand this word to be generally related to certain types of skin care services and cosmetics. The Patent Court thus concluded that the term SPA was used in the Korean market to describe the efficacy and use of certain cosmetic products, and as such lacked distinctiveness for such products.
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