. /.RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONIP/C/W/117/Add.15/Suppl.1
15 March 1999
(99-1029)
Council for Trade-Related Aspects
of Intellectual Property RightsOriginal:  English
REVIEW UNDER ARTICLE 24.2 OF THE APPLICATION OF THE
PROVISIONS OF THE SECTION OF THE TRIPS AGREEMENT
ON GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
Responses to the Checklist of Questions1
Supplement
ICELAND
The present document represents the responses to the questions contained in document
IP/C/13/Add.1, which the Secretariat has received from Iceland by means of a communication from
its Permanent Mission, dated 8 March 1999.
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RESPONSES TO THE QUESTIONS IN DOCUMENT IP/C/13/ADD.1
A. GENERAL (SECTION A OF DOCUMENT IP /C/13)
1. Does your economy's industrial property law and/or related law prevent the use of
geographical indications identifying wines or spirits against products not originating in the place
indicated by the geographical indication, even where the true origin of the goods is indicated or the
geographical indication is used in translation or accompanied by expressions such as "kind", "type","style", "imitation" or the like?
The Icelandic Competition Act provides the general protection of geographical indications,
i.e. prohibition against unfair competition and misleading advertising.  Advertisements or other
information may not be misleading for the consumer concerning the origin of the product.  It has to bedetermined in each case if an indication can be misleading.
Geographical indications are also protected by  Article 14.1.2 of the Icelandic Trademark Act.
According to that provision, a trademark may not be registered if the mark is liable to deceive.  The
special protection required for wines and spirits under Article 23.1 of the TRIPS Agreement is set outin paragraph 3 of Article 14 of the Icelandic Trademark Act.  The provision does not mention
expressions such as "kind" or "type".  It has to be determined in each case if an indication can be
deceiving.
B. 
DEFINITION AND CRITERIA FOR RECOGNITION (SECTION B OF DOCUMENT IP /C/13)
2/3. Is there a clear distinction among the term s "geographical indications", "appellations of
origin" and "indications of source" in your economy's industrial property law and/or related law, or
                                                     
1 Documents IP/C/13 and IP/C/13/Add.1.IP/C/W/117/Add.15/Suppl.1
Page 2
are there any substantive criteria to distinguish these terms?   Does your legislation contain criteria
for homonymous geographical indications for wines and spirits?
There is no distinction among those terms in the Icelandic legislation and there is no
substantive criteria to distinguish them.
C. RELATIONSHIP TO TRADEMARKS (SECTION F OF DOCUMENT IP /C/13)
4. Does your economy's industrial property law and/or related law provide the refusal or
invalidation of a trademark registration, which consists of or contains geographical indications
identifying wines or spirits with respect to such wines or spirits not originating in the indicated
territory?
The Icelandic authorities (The Patent Office) ensure ex officio, as a part of the examination
procedure and opposition procedure from third parties, that geographical indications are not registered
as trademarks.
If a trademark, which contains a misleading ge ographical indication, has been registered, it is
possible to oppose the registration and the registration can be invalidated.  The procedures are the
normal procedures which apply in case of any trademark conflict, both administrative procedures and
normal civil procedures before the courts of law.
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