NUROFEN
Nurofen has been registered in the UK since the 1980s for ibuprofen-based pain relief products. The brand, owned by Reckitt Benckiser, became the UK's leading branded ibuprofen product.
UK IPO Record
- Application Number
- UK00003130779
- Word Mark
- NUROFEN
- Status
- Registered
- Applied
- 9 October 2015
- Registered
- 1 January 2016
- Next Renewal
- 9 October 2035
- Owner
- Reckitt Benckiser Healthcare (UK) Limited
- Nice Classes
- Class 5
Brand History & Trademark Analysis
Nurofen has been registered in the UK since the 1980s for ibuprofen-based pain relief products. The brand, owned by Reckitt Benckiser, became the UK's leading branded ibuprofen product. In 2016, Nurofen faced regulatory action in Australia for marketing identical formulations under different 'targeted' pain names, a case that highlighted the tension between trademark positioning and consumer protection.
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Historical Background
Nurofen was introduced to the UK in 1983 as the first ibuprofen product available over the counter, after ibuprofen's prescription-only status was changed. Reckitt & Colman developed the brand following ibuprofen's synthesis by Boots scientist Stewart Adams in 1961. The name was coined as a blend of elements connoting new, neurological, and pain. Nurofen Express, introduced in 1995, was separately registered as a trademark covering a lysine salt formulation that acts faster than standard ibuprofen.