Birkenstocks may be cool enough for Barbie, but sandals do not qualify as artwork, the German court ruled.
The company claimed that its shoes could be classified as art, so it is protected by the author’s rights laws in the case he presented to stop the rivals selling a Copycat version of the cork sandal.
But the judge rejected the claim, saying that shoes were practical design items.
Birkenstocks once considered itself unusual, but in recent years it has become extremely popular, and has attracted more attention after actress Margot Robbie wore a pink couple in the last scene of the hit movie Barbie 2023.
Sandals containing the shaped leg shaped are praised that they are comfortable and solid, and many of the color options and styles of the belt have developed from the original version with the skin in the 1960s.
Although he was initially rejected from the runway, he soon became a modern subject, achieving the seal of the Supermodel Kate Moss approval in the 1990s, and even at the Academy Awards.
The company at the end List on the New York Stock Exchange 2023 It was also estimated at about $ 8.6 billion (£ 7.08 billion) – doubled its value in 2021.
The popularity of Birkenstocks means that rivals often sell the Knock-off version, which made the company a request to protect what it called “iconic design”.
German law distinguishes design and art when it comes to a product. The design serves a practical purpose, while artwork should show a certain amount of individual creativity.
Art is covered by copyright protection, which lasts 70 years after the death of the Creator, while the design protection lasts 25 years since the application is submitted.
Moisturian Karl Birkenstock, born in the 1930s, is still alive. Because some of his sandals no longer enjoy the protection of design, the company tried to gain copyright protection, wanting to classify its shoes as art.
But the claim was “unfounded,” said President Judge Thomas Koch.
His verdict added that for the protection of copyright, he must be achieved by “a degree of design that shows individuality.”
