Louboutin owns atrademark for the red sole of its luxury shoes. When YSL launched a collectionof monochrome red shoes, including the sole, Louboutin sued for infringement.

The U.S. court gave anuanced answer: the red sole mark is valid, but only when it contrasts with therest of the shoe. An entirely red YSL shoe does not create confusion becausethe sole does not stand out from the remainder of the product.

The fundamentalprinciple to emerge from this case is that trademark protection is only asstrong as the clarity and precision with which its subject matter is defined. Acolour may function as a trademark, but it cannot monopolise a shade in everypossible use.

The practical lessonfor any brand is this: when registering a non-traditional mark, whether colour,shape or sound, the exact scope of protection must be carefully delineated ifyou want to enforce it later.