IKEA loses its trademark in Indonesia

Swedish furniture retailer IKEA has lost the rights to its own trademark in Indonesia. The Indonesian supreme court has ruled that the trademark belongs to the local rattan furniture company PT Ratania Khatulistiwa.

In 2013, the Indonesian company registered the trademark IKEA – an acronym for Intan Khatulistiwa Esa Abadi, which refers to the rattan industry. The Swedish furnituremaker registered their trademark in Indonesia in 2010, but has not used its trademark in three consecutive years for commercial purposes. IKEA’s first and only store in the country so far was opened in late 2014. Under Indonesian trademark law, this means the registration can be deleted.

The ruling of the supreme court came in May 2015 but was only published last week.