Australia rebuffs Audi in dispute over Nio naming conventions

In Germany, Nio is not allowed to call its models ES6, ES7 and ES6 as there is a risk of confusion with Audi's S models. But in Australia, the trademark dispute between the two manufacturers has now gone the other way: Nio does not have to switch to ‘EL’ instead of ‘ES’ as it does in the German market.

The dispute over trademark rights has been dragging on since October 2021. We remember: Nio wanted to launch three electric SUVs in Germany with the names ES6, ES7 and ES8, as the vehicles were also sold under these names in China. However, Audi saw a risk of confusion with its own sporty S models S6, S7 and S8 – which is why Audi filed a lawsuit at the Munich Regional Court. One trial and an appeal hearing later, Audi won its case at the Munich Higher Regional Court in the spring of 2024.

Despite the decision in Audi’s home market, the legal battle continues internationally: Audi also wanted to prevent the original Nio nomenclature in Australia, but the intellectual property authority responsible there rejected Audi’s objection, according to the portal CN EV Post. Conversely, Nio can continue with the brand registration in Australia.

The Nio range now includes eight models. These are the ES8, ES7, ES6, EC7, EC6, ET7, ET5 and ET5 Touring series. The ET9 is set to follow in the first quarter of 2025. In Germany and a few other markets, the first three series are called EL8, EL7 and EL6.

cnevpost.com