It's been an ugly fight...but the battle over the trademark of the term Ugg Boots is over.
After years of controversy, the Government has clarified the details of a settlement reached this year.
It is all right to use the word Ugg, or Ugh, but the Government says companies must not mark their product with a brand deceptively similar to that of another firm.
In 2003, the United States company Deckers successfully took court action to stop companies using the word, but Australian manufacturers of the sheepskin boots banded together and eventually reached an agreement with Deckers in another court case that took place early this year.
The trademark regulator, IP Australia, allowed the trademark to remain on the register.
Parliamentary industry secretary Bob Baldwin yesterday clarified the decision.
"The trademark protection only applies for the way the mark looks or appears in its entirety, rather than the words used within it."
Mr Baldwin said the decision allowed Australian industry to continue manufacturing.
- NZPA
Ugg court claim gets boot
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