Google, LVMH call truce on online advertising
Source: RuthBender
PARIS-- Google Inc. and France’s LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA on Thursday said they settled a 10-year legal dispute over trademark referencing as they decided to jointly fight advertising for counterfeit products online.
Luxury-goods company LVMH LVMH, +0.73% had complained 10 years ago that ads sold by Google GOOG, +1.26% infringed its trademarks and promoted the sale of counterfeit goods on the Internet, triggering a long series of lawsuits that travelled all the way to the European Union’s highest court.
The two companies on Thursday said they decided to call a truce by signing a cooperation agreement to together fight against the promotion and sale of counterfeit goods on the web. The companies didn’t provide details of the agreement.
“Today’s LVMH-Google agreement paves the way for greater cooperation towards a safer and more engaging digital environment, brands will be protected both online and offline,” said Pierre Godé, LVMH’s vice president.
The case that opposed the two groups concerned Google’s AdWords service, which prompts ads to appear alongside the search results when a user searches for a particular term.
| }
|