Can trademarks be applied for legal protection independently of products and services
Trademarks can seek legal protection independently of products and services.
With the development of information technology, the well-known trademarks of others The "preemptive registration" phenomenon has evolved from traditional registration as a trademark to registration as a domain name. Therefore, a theory of anti-dilution protection of well-known trademarks is currently popular in the world. The United States has become the only country in the world that has formulated a special law on the trademark dilution system. It defines dilution as: the act of reducing or weakening the identification and distinctiveness of a well-known trademark for its goods or services, regardless of whether the well-known trademark owner and others whether there is a competitive relationship or the possibility of confusion and misunderstanding. In layman’s terms, the so-called “dilution” refers to the use of signs that are identical or similar to a well-known trademark on non-similar goods or services, thereby weakening the distinctiveness and attractiveness of a well-known trademark. Anti-dilution protection of well-known trademarks is an important aspect of trademark protection in use.
Dilution can seriously erode or even destroy a company's trademarks and trade names , the distinctive characteristics and advertising value of product packaging have negatively affected companies with these business marks. Therefore, anti-dilution protection for business marks will help curb others’ improper use of these marks. Dilution is not just an act of trademark infringement; it is essentially an act of unfair competition that deviates from honest and trustworthy business practices. and general misconductThe difference is that dilution is mainly regulated through special anti-dilution laws. In some other countries, some, such as Japan, have passed anti-unfair competition laws, while others, such as France, have applied the provisions on infringement in civil law to prevent the dilution of well-known trademarks. There are no legal provisions on this in our country.
Anti-dilution legislation aims to provide special protection to well-known trademarks to prevent the reputation and distinctive features of the well-known trademark from being tarnished or disparaged due to the registration or use of a third party after the trademark has become well-known. Therefore, a prominent feature of anti-dilution is that it is based on protecting trademark rights and does not consider the possibility of consumers confusing goods; the prohibited behavior is no longer deceptively misleading consumers, but the use of the trademark itself, that is, as long as others use the trademark Applied to goods, the trademark owner has the right to prohibit even if consumers are not confused about the actual product. Because if the product is of poor quality or even inferior, consumers may have a negative opinion of the trademark owner and may prevent the trademark owner from using the trademark in different markets in the future. It can be seen that the fundamental goal of anti-dilution protection is to prohibit competitors from unfairly benefiting from others' reputations, and its theoretical basis is the reputational value of trademarks. Once a trademark is well-known, it acquires independent value. Its main function is no longer to distinguish the source, but to reflect the owner's credibility and reputation.
Therefore, trademarks can seek legal protection independently of products and services. . This protection is not only to prevent confusion but also to prevent the reputation of a well-known trademark from being damaged by unfair competition, that is, to prevent the trademark from being diluted or tarnished. It can be seen that anti-dilution further extends the protected interests of well-known trademarks: protecting the reputation of trademarks with special market development value from damage and ensuring trademark owners' access to relevant markets.
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