It does not matter whether the product characteristics that are described are economically essential or secondary. This is because the wording of the ground for refusal does not distinguish between the characteristics of the signs or indications of which the trade mark consists. However, in view of the public interest underlying the provision, any undertaking must be free to use such signs or indications to describe any characteristic of its own goods, irrespective of their economic significance.^[1]
For example, the colour of a hoover may only be of secondary importance in the purchasing decision. Nevertheless, a word mark 'yellow' for hoovers, for example, would not be eligible for protection. Nor can it make any difference to the assessment of a geographical indication such as 'Cloppenburg' whether or not a geographical reference is relevant to the public in connection with the 'retail services' claimed under the application. Something else would only apply if the geographical indication were no longer to be seen as a description of a characteristic at all^[2].