German court rules Obi cannot claim exclusive trademark on orange colour

After years of litigation, the Federal Court of Justice affirmed the Federal Patent Court's finding that Obi's orange shade cannot be protected as a trademark. The court explained that the colour functions only as a generic signal of a hardware store chain, not as a distinctive sign of Obi. This decision upholds the application by competitors Hornbach and Globus to cancel Obi's colour registration at the German Patent and Trademark Office.

Obi had maintained that the specific orange tone, also used in its logo, was a core and unique part of its brand identity. The ruling therefore concludes the protracted legal battle between the retailer and its rivals. It may set a precedent for how German retailers approach colour branding in the future. The case highlights the limits of colour marks under German trademark law.