How to safeguard prior rights and prevent squatting is reflected in registered trademarks
Conflicts with previously registered trademarks The application for trademark registration shall be rejected. Under certain circumstances, that is, if different entities apply for registration of the same similar trademark on the same similar goods on the same day, the prior user's application for registration of the trademark shall be preliminarily reviewed. The first-to-use principle in this particular case is an effective supplement to the first-to-file principle.
The regulations on the protection of well-known trademarks are even more epoch-making significance. Well-known trademarks refer to trademarks that are widely known to the relevant public in China and enjoy a high reputation. This is mainly described from the perspective of the factual state. From the perspective of the legal system, a well-known trademark does not refer to any specific trademark, but a special protection that may be obtained by trademarks that meet certain conditions. It is a supplement to the general trademark protection system.
China’s practice of protecting well-known trademarks has gone through a gradual process, during which some misunderstandings have emerged. This is highlighted by the fact that some companies confuse "well-known trademarks" with "famous brands" in the marketing sense, and regard the recognition of well-known trademarks as a means to enhance corporate and trademark visibility, thereby promoting products. This misunderstanding did not disappear immediately due to the revision of the Trademark Law. After the implementation of the new Trademark Law, a considerable number of trademark objections filed based on the well-known trademark protection provisionsIt belongs to "the drunkard's intention is not to cancel the opposed trademark, but to recognize the well-known trademark."
In fact, on the one hand, a well-known trademark is a factual state , on the other hand, when traditional trademark protection methods cannot provide relief for the fact of damage, providing relief by identifying well-known trademarks and extending protection is the core of the well-known trademark protection system. Therefore, the rush to identify well-known trademarks for the purpose of pursuing commercial profits is putting the cart before the horse. In order to eliminate the above misunderstandings, two principles should be resolutely implemented, namely the principle of case identification and the principle of passive protection.
The so-called case identification principle means that when there are appropriate demands The determination of the well-known trademark in the case is only valid for this case, and the determination results are not continuous. If relevant claims arise later, the aforementioned determination results will only have reference value. The so-called passive protection principle means that the trademark authority or the people's court can only determine whether the relevant trademark is well-known at the request of the party concerned, and provide expanded protection, and does not take the initiative to conduct determination work.
Application for trademark registration is not allowed Damage the existing prior rights of others, or use unfair means to preemptively register a trademark that is already used by others and has a certain influence. As mentioned above, there are still debatable aspects of this provision in terms of its internal logic and literal expression. However, these shortcomings do not negate the important role it plays in the system of protecting prior rights under the Trademark Law.
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