Big news for European search advertisers today. Today, the European Court of Justice ruled that Google was not in violation of trademark law for allowing advertisers to bid on trademarked names. You can see the court documents and also read Google’s blog post which says:

Today, the Court confirmed that Google has not infringed trade mark law by allowing advertisers to bid for keywords corresponding to their competitors’ trade marks. It also confirmed that European law that protects internet hosting services applies to Google’s AdWords advertising system. This is important because it is a fundamental principle behind the free flow of information over the internet.

In short, Louis Vuitton sued Google for allowing advertisers to bid on the trademark [Louis Vuitton]. Merchants were bidding on the name and selling fake items, possibly confusing searchers. The court ruled that although this was happening, Google cannot be held liable.

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.