The Nordic Resistance Movement (NRM) uses the “Nordfront” name for a website, and has the trademark registered with the Swedish Patent and Registration Office (PRV) for use as marketing material in “goods and services”.
German company Nordfrost, which claims to be “number six in the world in the deep-freeze sector” last year launched an objection to the trademark however, complaining that the “Nordfront” name could be confused with their brand.
“The brands are phonetically and visually very similar; only one letter separates the brands. Furthermore, there are conceptual similarities between the trademarks where both can be associated with geographic and meteorological conditions,” the German firm wrote in its complaint.
“There is, in our opinion, an obvious risk that third parties will mistakenly get the impression that there is a commercial link,” it added.
The PRV agreed with Nordfrost's objection, meaning the NRM will now no longer be able to use the “Nordfront” name in promotional materials, like for example flyers.
PRV's decision however does not apply to NRM's use of the name on clothing items.
The NRM in Borlänge. Photo: Ulf Palm/TT
Earlier this year, anti-racism foundation Expo said that the NRM was the driving force behind a surge in neo-Nazi activity in Sweden during 2016, with propaganda-spreading including the distribution of flyers and stickers their most common form of activity.
READ ALSO: Why 2016 saw a surge in neo-Nazi activity in Sweden
“They're at the most extreme end of this white supremacist area. There's a lot of crime associated with them, they have a relationship with violence,” Expo researcher Jonathan Leman told The Local at the time.
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