The judgment below is reversed, and the case is remanded to the Patent Court.

The grounds of appeal are examined (to the extent of supplement in case of supplemental appellate briefs not timely filed).

1. The registered service mark of this case and the registered service mark of this case (registration number E) of this case are designated service business, consisting of “A” and “A”. The registered service mark of this case and the registered service mark (registration number E) were decided on June 26, 1996.

The key issue of this case is whether the registered service mark of this case is not eligible for registration because it constitutes a conspicuous geographical name, which is an important part of the registered service mark of this case.

2. The Trademark Act provides that a trademark consisting solely of a conspicuous geographical name, the abbreviation thereof or a map may not be registered.

[1] Article 6(1)4 of the former Trademark Act (wholly amended by Act No. 14033, Feb. 29, 2016; hereinafter “former Trademark Act”) or Article 33(1)4 of the former Trademark Act also provides for the same purport. The legislative purport of the aforementioned provision is to deny the distinctiveness of a trademark due to its apparentness and well-knownness, and thus, to refuse to grant the right to exclusive use only to a specific individual.

(See Supreme Court Decision 201Hu958 Decided December 13, 2012, supra, refers to a conspicuous geographical name that is widely known to ordinary consumers (see, e.g., Supreme Court Decision 2004Hu240, Apr. 28, 2004). The standard point of time for such determination is when determining whether a trademark applied for is registered as a matter of principle.

(see, e.g., Supreme Court Decision 201Hu1142, Apr. 13, 2012). Whether a geographical name can be seen as conspicuous ought to be reasonably determined by comprehensively taking into account all the circumstances that may affect ordinary consumers’ perception, including textbooks, press reports, surveys, etc., based on the said point of time.

This legal principle applies likewise to service marks.

3. The reasoning of the lower judgment and the reasoning.