Merck & Co.: Difference between revisions

In 191 of 193 countries, the original Merck company, the [[Merck Group]] of Darmstadt, owns the rights to the "Merck" name. In the United States and Canada, the company trades under the name EMD (an abbreviation of Emanuel Merck, Darmstadt), its legal name here says ''Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany'', and instead of "Merck Group", the "EMD Group" name is used. In the United States and Canada, Merck & Co. holds the rights to the trademark "Merck", while in the rest of the world the company trades under the name MSD (an abbreviation of Merck, Sharp & Dohme) and its legal name says here ''Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc. Kenilworth, NJ, USA''.

In 2015 the [[Merck Group]] adopted a new logo and said it will be "much more aggressive" about protecting the brand of "the real Merck". Merck of Darmstadt has initiated litigation against its former subsidiary, Merck & Co. (MSD) of Kenilworth, in several countries over infringing use of the Merck name. In 2016, the [[High Court of Justice]] in the [[United Kingdom]] ruled that MSD had breached an agreement with its former parent company and that only Merck of Darmstadt is entitled to use the Merck name in the United Kingdom. The judge also held that MSD's use of "Merck" as part of branding on its global websites were directed to the UK and infringed Merck's trade mark rights in the UK.

In response to the ruling, MSD initiated counter-litigation in the United States in January 2016 by filing a federal lawsuit which accused its former parent company of "infringing on its trademark" through actions that included the increased usage of "Merck KGaA" and "MERCK" in branding in the US as well as on its social media presence. Further Merck & Co. has also accused the Merck Group of federal trademark dilution, unfair competition, false advertising, deceptive trade practices, breach of contract, and [[cybersquatting]]. The case came to a head when a research scientist believed he was communicating with Merck & Co regarding a research grant in oncology, when in fact he was talking with the Merck Group. As a result, Merck & Co. asked the federal court to stop the Merck Group from using "Merck" on any products or marketing materials in the United States. As a direct result, Merck & Co is seeking "''all monetary gains, profits, and advantages''" made by the Merck Group and three-times the damage, plus additional punitive damages.

In April 2020, in the course of litigation of Merck against MSD in Switzerland, the [[Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland]] ruled that MSD's use of the "Merck" brand in its global websites could, absent [[geotargeting]] mechanisms, have "commercial effect" in Switzerland and could therefore violate Merck's rights (if any) to the "Merck" brand in Switzerland.

In 2021, an investigation by [[Reuters]] revealed that Merck's baldness drug [[Finasteride|Propecia]] caused persistent sexual dysfunction in men. The drug has been linked to over 700 incidences of suicidal thoughts and 110 deaths. Merck has been receiving reports since 1998, but never included the risks on the label. In 2015, Merck was sued by consumer-rights law firm Hagens Berman over a wrongful death linked to Propecia.