On July 1, 2011, the new Language Act came into force, after provoking a great deal of furore. Is it really true that in the future we will have a shopping centre called Aktsiamees instead of Stockmann and, in order to travel toFinland, we will use the services of a company called Pikktint (Tallink)? Or are these fears unfounded? The new Language Act sets out a several new requirements for use of trade marks in public spaces as well as contracts, web pages and, for instance, company letterheads. Below, you will find a short overview of the Language Act which entrepreneurs should know and follow in their activities.
Signs and signposts in public places must be in Estonian
The new Language Act requires the following to be in Estonian: public signposts, signs, company type and outdoor advertising, including outdoor advertising used for political campaigns, as well as notices by legal persons. Translation of the text into a foreign language may be added but the Estonian text must have precedence and must not be less visible than the foreign language text.
All foreign language business place names such as lounge, pub, or shop must be accompanied by a sign in Estonian. So the possibility to use a foreign language business place name remains, but it must be accompanied by the business place name in Estonian. In any case, the Estonian text must have precedence. The regulation in itself is not completely new. Only the wording has been amended and efforts have been made to eliminate possibilities to evade this requirement.
In certain circumstances, a trade mark must be accompanied by a translation into Estonian
What is new in the Language Act is a regulation regarding trade marks. That is, starting from July, any foreign language element of a trade mark which contains important information about place of business or goods or services offered must also be presented in Estonian, while at the same time not harming the distinctive character of the trade mark. In this case, however, the requirement that the Estonian text must have precedence does not apply. In addition, this information does not have to have the same design as the trade mark and the information can be presented near the entrance to the place of business or in a display window.
According to the Acts’s explanatory memorandum, the need for this requirement arose from the fact that more and more entrepreneurs registered business place names as trade marks to evade the requirement set out in the Language Act that public information must be in Estonian. As a result, however, foreign languages started to prevail in the outward appearance of Tallinn, especially the OldTown. The good news is that in no case does the trade mark have to be used solely in Estonian, and so Tallink remains Tallink and Hard Rock Cafe does not become Kõva Roki Kohvik. However, if a trade mark contains important information about the place of business or the goods or services offered, the foreign language element of the trade mark must also be presented in Estonian. This leads us to the question – should only the word kohvik (cafe) be added to the Hard Rock Cafe trade mark or does it still have to be Kõva Roki Kohvik?
It is not always perfectly clear what should be considered as important information about the place of business or goods or services offered. Moreover, the requirement to also present the information in Estonian creates confusion. Does this mean that a direct translation of the important information in the trade mark should be added or rather an explanatory text? Adding the word juuksed (hair) to the trade mark “Pro Hair”, which among other things stands for hair products, or Keha Pood (body shop) to the trade mark “Body Shop”, which stands for different body products, is unlikely to bring about greater clarity for consumers or help to promote the development and preservation of the Estonian language. Indeed, vice versa: full compliance with this requirement may result in rather comical situations.
We should also keep in mind that a trade mark cannot only directly describe services or goods, as purely descriptive signs cannot be registered as trade marks. If a trade mark contains an element that describes goods or services, it is considered to be an element of the trade mark that is not subject to protection. Trade marks may allude to goods or services in order to form associations for the consumer and at the same time to simplify memorisation of the sign, but these are exactly those implications which may turn out to be rather difficult to translate. In today’s global world, entrepreneurs wishing to ensure in advance that their trade mark can be used in different countries often deliberately choose an English descriptive element for their trade mark. This is surely one of the reasons why we see so many foreign language signs on our streets.
It should also be noted that this requirement may place on an unequal footing companies that are active in the same field, one of which has the respective information included in their trade mark and another that does not. For example, while the word pank has to be added to the Swedbank trade mark when used as a sign for a place of business or in outdoor advertising, no similar requirement applies to the Nordea trade mark.
A web page must contain at least summary information in Estonian
A new addition to the Language Act concerns web pages. That is, if an agency, company, non-profit association, foundation or sole proprietor registered in Estonia has a foreign language web page directed at the public, it must contain at least summary information in Estonian about its area of activity or goods or services offered. From this it can be concluded, for example, that if a company that has committed itself exclusively to export and has an English .com home page directed only at foreign customers, the web page must still contain summary information in Estonian about its area of activity or the goods or services offered. The same requirement applies to Russian-language web pages directed exclusively at the Russian-speaking population, at least for pages belonging to a company registered inEstonia.
The language of seals, rubber stamps and letter-heads is Estonian
The new Language Act requires seals, rubber stamps and letter-heads of an agency, company, non-profit association, foundation or sole proprietor registered in Estonia that are used in public communication to be in Estonian. The Estonian text may be accompanied by a translation into a foreign language. In correspondence with a person from a foreign country as well as in international communication, letter-heads in a foreign language may be used.
In itself, this not really a new regulation. The previous version of the Language Act also included an obligation for companies registered inEstoniato use an Estonian seal, rubber stamp and letter-head in public communication, appending a translation into a foreign language if necessary. An update to the Act is a provision allowing use of a foreign language letter-head when corresponding with a person from a foreign country and in international communication. As in practice foreign language letter-heads have been used in international communication for a long time, this amendment to the Act can only be welcomed.
Contracts must be in Estonian – unless agreed otherwise by the parties
Another new provision in the new Language Act concerns the language of contracts. According to the Act, an employment contract and a contract concluded under the Law of Obligations Act, which for one party is not related to economic or professional activity, as well as a public service contract must be concluded in Estonian, unless the parties agree to use some other language. The authors of the Act have explained that this provision does not restrict freedom of contract and the parties still have the right to agree to conclude a contract in another language. This can lead to the question: what is the point of this provision if parties may also agree otherwise. First and foremost, the purpose of the provision is to protect the weaker party, for example employees, who always have the right to require an Estonian contract when concluding an employment contract.
What happens to violators?
As can be expected, the Act also lays down different sanctions for violations. A natural person who commits a violation is punishable by a fine of up to 200 fine units (that is, up to EUR 800). However, a legal person that commits a violation can be punished by a fine of up to EUR 1300.
There are probably no doubts that the purpose of the Language Act – to develop, preserve and protect the Estonian language and to ensure that Estonian is used as the main language of communication in all areas of public life – is cherished by and important to all of us. But are all the amendments to the Language Act described above really the best way of achieving this goal? Or do some of the new provisions of the Act cause more confusion and comical situations? I guess time will tell.
Brands, signposts and web pages in Estonian – myth or reality?
On July 1, 2011, the new Language Act came into force, after provoking a great deal of furore. Is it really true that in the future we will have a shopping centre called Aktsiamees instead of Stockmann and, in order to travel toFinland, we will use the services of a company called Pikktint (Tallink)? Or are these fears unfounded? The new Language Act sets out a several new requirements for use of trade marks in public spaces as well as contracts, web pages and, for instance, company letterheads. Below, you will find a short overview of the Language Act which entrepreneurs should know and follow in their activities.
Signs and signposts in public places must be in Estonian
The new Language Act requires the following to be in Estonian: public signposts, signs, company type and outdoor advertising, including outdoor advertising used for political campaigns, as well as notices by legal persons. Translation of the text into a foreign language may be added but the Estonian text must have precedence and must not be less visible than the foreign language text.
All foreign language business place names such as lounge, pub, or shop must be accompanied by a sign in Estonian. So the possibility to use a foreign language business place name remains, but it must be accompanied by the business place name in Estonian. In any case, the Estonian text must have precedence. The regulation in itself is not completely new. Only the wording has been amended and efforts have been made to eliminate possibilities to evade this requirement.
In certain circumstances, a trade mark must be accompanied by a translation into Estonian
What is new in the Language Act is a regulation regarding trade marks. That is, starting from July, any foreign language element of a trade mark which contains important information about place of business or goods or services offered must also be presented in Estonian, while at the same time not harming the distinctive character of the trade mark. In this case, however, the requirement that the Estonian text must have precedence does not apply. In addition, this information does not have to have the same design as the trade mark and the information can be presented near the entrance to the place of business or in a display window.
According to the Acts’s explanatory memorandum, the need for this requirement arose from the fact that more and more entrepreneurs registered business place names as trade marks to evade the requirement set out in the Language Act that public information must be in Estonian. As a result, however, foreign languages started to prevail in the outward appearance of Tallinn, especially the OldTown. The good news is that in no case does the trade mark have to be used solely in Estonian, and so Tallink remains Tallink and Hard Rock Cafe does not become Kõva Roki Kohvik. However, if a trade mark contains important information about the place of business or the goods or services offered, the foreign language element of the trade mark must also be presented in Estonian. This leads us to the question – should only the word kohvik (cafe) be added to the Hard Rock Cafe trade mark or does it still have to be Kõva Roki Kohvik?
It is not always perfectly clear what should be considered as important information about the place of business or goods or services offered. Moreover, the requirement to also present the information in Estonian creates confusion. Does this mean that a direct translation of the important information in the trade mark should be added or rather an explanatory text? Adding the word juuksed (hair) to the trade mark “Pro Hair”, which among other things stands for hair products, or Keha Pood (body shop) to the trade mark “Body Shop”, which stands for different body products, is unlikely to bring about greater clarity for consumers or help to promote the development and preservation of the Estonian language. Indeed, vice versa: full compliance with this requirement may result in rather comical situations.
We should also keep in mind that a trade mark cannot only directly describe services or goods, as purely descriptive signs cannot be registered as trade marks. If a trade mark contains an element that describes goods or services, it is considered to be an element of the trade mark that is not subject to protection. Trade marks may allude to goods or services in order to form associations for the consumer and at the same time to simplify memorisation of the sign, but these are exactly those implications which may turn out to be rather difficult to translate. In today’s global world, entrepreneurs wishing to ensure in advance that their trade mark can be used in different countries often deliberately choose an English descriptive element for their trade mark. This is surely one of the reasons why we see so many foreign language signs on our streets.
It should also be noted that this requirement may place on an unequal footing companies that are active in the same field, one of which has the respective information included in their trade mark and another that does not. For example, while the word pank has to be added to the Swedbank trade mark when used as a sign for a place of business or in outdoor advertising, no similar requirement applies to the Nordea trade mark.
A web page must contain at least summary information in Estonian
A new addition to the Language Act concerns web pages. That is, if an agency, company, non-profit association, foundation or sole proprietor registered in Estonia has a foreign language web page directed at the public, it must contain at least summary information in Estonian about its area of activity or goods or services offered. From this it can be concluded, for example, that if a company that has committed itself exclusively to export and has an English .com home page directed only at foreign customers, the web page must still contain summary information in Estonian about its area of activity or the goods or services offered. The same requirement applies to Russian-language web pages directed exclusively at the Russian-speaking population, at least for pages belonging to a company registered inEstonia.
The language of seals, rubber stamps and letter-heads is Estonian
The new Language Act requires seals, rubber stamps and letter-heads of an agency, company, non-profit association, foundation or sole proprietor registered in Estonia that are used in public communication to be in Estonian. The Estonian text may be accompanied by a translation into a foreign language. In correspondence with a person from a foreign country as well as in international communication, letter-heads in a foreign language may be used.
In itself, this not really a new regulation. The previous version of the Language Act also included an obligation for companies registered inEstoniato use an Estonian seal, rubber stamp and letter-head in public communication, appending a translation into a foreign language if necessary. An update to the Act is a provision allowing use of a foreign language letter-head when corresponding with a person from a foreign country and in international communication. As in practice foreign language letter-heads have been used in international communication for a long time, this amendment to the Act can only be welcomed.
Contracts must be in Estonian – unless agreed otherwise by the parties
Another new provision in the new Language Act concerns the language of contracts. According to the Act, an employment contract and a contract concluded under the Law of Obligations Act, which for one party is not related to economic or professional activity, as well as a public service contract must be concluded in Estonian, unless the parties agree to use some other language. The authors of the Act have explained that this provision does not restrict freedom of contract and the parties still have the right to agree to conclude a contract in another language. This can lead to the question: what is the point of this provision if parties may also agree otherwise. First and foremost, the purpose of the provision is to protect the weaker party, for example employees, who always have the right to require an Estonian contract when concluding an employment contract.
What happens to violators?
As can be expected, the Act also lays down different sanctions for violations. A natural person who commits a violation is punishable by a fine of up to 200 fine units (that is, up to EUR 800). However, a legal person that commits a violation can be punished by a fine of up to EUR 1300.
There are probably no doubts that the purpose of the Language Act – to develop, preserve and protect the Estonian language and to ensure that Estonian is used as the main language of communication in all areas of public life – is cherished by and important to all of us. But are all the amendments to the Language Act described above really the best way of achieving this goal? Or do some of the new provisions of the Act cause more confusion and comical situations? I guess time will tell.