WIPO Webinar for Judges: Navigating the Threshold of Trademark Use in Online Advertising

The rise of online advertising has reshaped the way businesses promote their products and services and, in turn, how courts assess trademark use and infringement. Search engines, sponsored links, and targeted keywords have become powerful commercial tools, allowing companies to reach consumers instantly based on their online searches. This transformation, however, also presents new legal challenges. When a trademark is used as a keyword or within an online advertisement, questions arise as to whether such use constitutes “trademark use,” whether confusion may result, and how courts should approach evidence in these contexts.

These challenges came to the forefront in a recent decision of the Singapore Court of Appeal (East Coast Podiatry Centre Pte Ltd v Family Podiatry Centre Pte Ltd [2025] SGCA 28), which considered the alleged use of another company’s registered composite mark within an online search advertising platform, where the word elements used were claimed to be similar and to amount to infringement. The case illustrated the fine balance between legitimate online marketing practices and the protection of trademark rights. It also raised broader questions about how the legal concept of “use as a trademark” should evolve in a digital marketplace where consumer perception and algorithmic placement intersect. The Singapore Court of Appeal’s reference to cases from the United Kingdom and from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) further illustrate the interconnectivity of jurisprudence worldwide.

Earlier in 2022, the Austrian Supreme Court (OGH 22 November 2022, Case No. 4 Ob 134/22 t), addressed the boundaries of online marketing practices under national trademark and competition law in a case which involved dynamic search advertising, where the defendant did not specify the advertisement’s wording. The ruling illustrates how courts in Europe are adapting to scenarios where algorithm-driven advertising and keyword bidding challenge traditional notions of trademark “use” and consumer confusion.

The Supreme Court of the Republic of Korea decision (Case No. 2010Hu3073) on keyword ads on search result pages in the context of trademark use and specifically on sponsored links, provides another perspective on these issues.

As online commerce continues to expand, courts around the world face similar questions: how should judges evaluate the likelihood of confusion when the alleged infringement takes place in an advertisement displayed by an algorithm? What principles guide the distinction between descriptive and infringing use of trademarks in digital contexts?

By discussing the Singapore case alongside perspectives from Austria and the Republic of Korea, this webinar offers a rich comparative lens across diverse jurisdictions.

Join the next WIPO Webinar for Judges to learn from the insights and experiences of Justice Dedar Singh GILL (High Court Judge, Supreme Court of Singapore), Judge Dr. Erich SCHWARZENBACHER (President of the 4th Chamber, Supreme Court of Austria), and Judge LEE Hyejin (Presiding Judge, Intellectual Property High Court of Korea). With reference to the highlighted judgments, the interactive webinar will explore issues such as:

• Judicial consideration of the threshold of trademark use;
• How judicial consideration is affected by the form of use, in particular, through online advertising and search engine results; and
• Illustrative cases where courts have considered these areas.

The webinar will be conducted on January 29, 2026 (13:00 – 14:30 CET, find your local time), in English, with simultaneous interpretation in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish. Participation is open only to judges of courts and adjudicators of quasi-judicial appeal bodies of Intellectual Property Offices.

Please register in order to participate in the webinar. Registration will be open until 18:00 (CET) on January 27, 2026. For any questions, contact the WIPO Judicial Institute at judicial.institute@wipo.int.

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