10 Apr 2015

Preliminary injunction against Oculus VR, LLC for violation of naming rights

On 8 August 2014 OCULUS Optikgeräte GmbH obtained a preliminary injunction from the Regional Court of Frankfurt a.M. against Oculus VR, LLC on account of illegal use of the OCULUS trade name. Under this injunction Oculus VR, LLC is prohibited to use the OCULUS trade name for smart glasses and other products, establishing a ban on the sale of VR glasses in Germany under the designation “Oculus Rift”. The injunction was granted ex-parte and without an oral hearing. The decision may be subject to appeal.

The beginnings of OCULUS date back to the year 1895. The Wetzlar-based company has thus been active worldwide in the field of medical engineering and ocular diagnostics for 120 years. As early as 1920 OCULUS Optikgeräte GmbH presented a universal trial frame for visual acuity testing. The name of OCULUS has been in use since 1932.

This family enterprise of long standing offers instruments of the highest quality standards for diagnosis, training and treatment which have earned it an excellent reputation among opticians, ophthalmologists, surgeons, optometrists and occupational physicians alike. Already in the late 1980s instruments developed and manufactured by OCULUS Optikgeräte GmbH were making use of computers for their control as well as results evaluation.

Oculus VR, LLC has been in the market only since 2012, primarily selling its so-called VR glasses under the name of Oculus and in so doing infringing the rights of OCULUS Optikgeräte GmbH.

After obtaining the temporary injunction OCULUS Optikgeräte GmbH continued to be open to an amicable agreement on the worldwide use of the name of Oculus. In the end however an agreement was made impossible by the inacceptable views of Oculus VR, LLC. OCULUS Optikgeräte GmbH therefore finds itself compelled to take action under the injunction against the continued sale of smart glasses under the designation of "Oculus Rift".