General

"International trademarks are a solid foundation for enterprises to expand their overseas business, and help international trade enterprises to shape international brands and improve market competitiveness. However, the overseas trademark protection system is complex, and enterprises often encounter registration and protection problems when going to sea, and need to pay attention to identify relevant risks Xue Youfei, a senior international trademark agent, said.

Xue Youfei said that there are usually three ways to register trademarks.

First, simple letters or initials of enterprise English names are easily rejected because of lack of salience and similarity with previous trademarks. If the enterprise wants to register the relevant trademark, it is suggested to use more than three letters and combine the vowel consonants to create a trademark that is easy to spell, so as to enhance the recognition; Or carry out graphic design and add graphic combination application.

The second is a pure Chinese trademark. This trademark is likely to be regarded as an icon and cannot be registered as a trademark. Some countries will also require explanations in Chinese. For enterprises to register such trademarks, it is recommended to apply in combination with English, pinyin and graphics, clarify the purpose of registration, and try to reflect the characteristics of products or Chinese characteristics.

The third is the Chinese pinyin trademark. Because the pronunciation habits of our country are different from those of overseas countries, it is difficult to promote it. It is recommended that international trade enterprises understand the pronunciation rules of English and apply for the trademark after improving it. In addition, enterprises should not ignore local cultural taboos when registering overseas trademarks. There was a trademark that was rejected because of the partial violation of Islamic sharia by female images. In terms of commodity selection, enterprises should avoid applying for too many commodity items, resulting in many additional costs. We should focus on meeting business needs, try to select products that meet international standards, and reasonably control the quantity of goods.

In terms of renewal, the validity period of trademarks in each country is different. International trade enterprises must calculate the registration and renewal time to save costs. Xue Youfei said that the period of validity of registered trademarks in Timor-Leste and Maldives is only 3 years, that in Bangladesh and Nepal is 7 years, that in the Philippines and the United States is 10 years, that in the Bahamas is 14 years, and that in Lebanon and Venezuela is 15 years.

In addition, international trade enterprises should also take the initiative to carry out monitoring and early warning, and actively exercise their rights if they find that they are rushing to register trademarks. "During the examination of trademark registration applications in most countries in Europe, the examination authorities only examine the absolute reasons for rejecting the applications on their own terms of reference, and will not actively cite the same or similar prior trademarks to issue a rejection, leaving the relative reasons to be resolved by the objection procedure. Therefore, international trade enterprises need to take the initiative to carry out trademark monitoring work, find the preempted trademarks in a timely manner, and take preventive measures, otherwise the preempted trademarks will directly pass the examination." Xue Youfei said that some countries and regions have provisions such as the European Union that "after a certain legal period, the trademark will not be declared invalid" or similar legal provisions. According to the provisions of the EU Trademark Law, the registered trademark can be declared invalid on the basis of violation of the prohibition clause, malicious preemption, prior rights and other reasons. However, if the previous obligee knows that the later EU trademark has been used for more than 5 years, the EU trademark will not be declared invalid, unless the later applied EU trademark is maliciously registered. Therefore, enterprises should use international intellectual property rules to solve problems when going to sea, and should not be lazy in exercising relevant rights.