What are the special principles for the registration and protection of three-dimensional trademarks
To obtain registration of a three-dimensional trademark, in addition to complying with general trademark registration principles , there are also some special requirements, also known as "restrictive conditions".
1. The appearance caused by the nature of the product itself cannot Registration
This provision applies to the appearance of the goods involved in the registration , compared with its natural state or usual processing state, it lacks anything special. In other words, this appearance is only a description of the product and cannot play the role of a trademark to distinguish the source of the product.
Due to different molecular structures, during the crystallization process Specific shapes will be produced in the water. After water crystallizes, it will take the shape of snowflakes. These two shapes are the natural solid state of water, or the appearance due to their properties. This shape cannot be registered. Of course, no one will give snow Register a snowflake-shaped three-dimensional trademark, and by analogy, the three-dimensional shape produced by the strong crystals of rock sugar cannot be registered on rock sugar, and the three-dimensional shape produced by alum crystals cannot be registered on alum.
In addition to the natural state that cannot be registered, the processed state cannot be registered either, for example Diamonds that are re-processed into a shape with a small bottom and a large top with multiple reflective surfaces cannot be registered, because otherwise they will not be able to reflect light well and will not look beautiful. This shape is determined by the processing state. , and cannot be registered.
2. The appearance determined by the function of the product cannot be registered
Function mainly includes two types: technical function and aesthetic function
1) Technical functions
The so-called technical function is that the appearance of the product is more suitable for the use of the product or reduces the processing cost. We consider this appearance to have a technical function. The regulation that the appearance of goods with technical functions cannot be registered is mainly to prevent the circumvention of patent laws. Because a purely functional shape should be protected by an invention patent and eventually enter the public domain, the owner cannot be allowed to register it as a trademark that can be renewed indefinitely. Functional shapes, in addition to being protected by invention patents, should be freely available to competitors.
2) Aesthetic function
Three-dimensional shapes with aesthetic functions cannot be registered as three-dimensional trademarks. The purpose of this provision is to avoid the purpose of the trademark being distorted and thereby damaging copyright and design rights. Appearances with aesthetic functions are not copyright or appearance Design patent protection objects.
When an enterprise designs a trademark We all try to make the trademark as beautiful as possible, so it is impossible to exclude the aesthetic function of the trademark. Since the aesthetic function of the trademark cannot be eliminated, and a trademark with aesthetic function cannot be registered, doesn’t it mean that it cannot be registered? Legal experts have also seen this problem. It was also proposed that if the recognition function of this three-dimensional shape is greater than the aesthetic function, it can be registered. If the aesthetic function is greater than the recognition function, it cannot be registered.
How to judge whether the aesthetic function or the recognition function of a three-dimensional shape is greater? There is a simple method: ask someone who is about to buy this Ordinary consumers of goods, "If the product had a different appearance, would you still buy it?"
If he will still buy it, it means that the shape has the identification function of a trademark and can be registered. But if the answer is no, it means that the shape has decisive significance: this is what the consumer buys. A shape. The shape therefore has an aesthetic effect, so this shape cannot be protected by trademark law.
In the actual operation process, it is recommended to seek professional advice and ask the professional lawyers of the Legal Savior Network to handle it, so as to safeguard your own and legal rights and interests to the maximum extent and protect your interests from harm. If you don’t understand something, you can also find relevant legal provisions to solve it.
