BUSINESS NEWS
Court rules on magazine name
Posted Mon, 26 Jun 2006
Magazine publishers Ramsay, Son & Parker (RS&P) have won the legal right to publish 'Wegbreek', their newly launched travel magazine, the company said in a statement on Friday. The Cape High Court dismissed with costs on Thursday an urgent application by Media24 to prevent 'Wegbreek' — the Afrikaans counterpart to 'Getaway' — from being published and distributed. "More importantly, Getaway's right to call its Afrikaans publication 'Wegbreek' has been confirmed by this decision," the company said.
'Wegbreek' vs 'Weg'
Media24 had argued that the publication would create confusion among readers because of the similarity to its own travel title, 'Weg'. The judgment follows a court case last year in which Media24, which had launched 'Wegbreek', changed the name to 'Weg' in a consensual agreement with RS&P. The High Court found in favour of RS&P, agreeing that the Afrikaans title, a direct translation of 'Getaway', was an infringement of
copyright and was passing off on the success and reputation of 'Getaway' magazine. Publisher Stirling Kotze said: "We are pleased but not surprised at the judgment. We were confident the court would rule in our favour. Consumers will clearly see the differences on the news-stand judging by the magazines' design, format and content. There will be no confusion in their minds."
Sapa
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