Monaco fails in bid to trademark name

The tiny principality of Monaco is too famous to trademark its own name, the European Union has ruled.

The EU’s General Court upheld an EU decision not to allow the wealthy enclave on France’s Mediterranean coast to use its name as a trademark on products, including printed matter and services linked to entertainment and sports.

The World Intellectual Property Organisation granted Monaco a trademark covering the EU in 2010, but the EU in 2013 refused to accept it.