1. Principle of voluntary registration

Voluntary registration is compared to compulsory registration, that is, whether the trademark user applies for registration of the trademark he uses is at his own free will, he can apply for registration, or You can use it without registering. Compulsory registration means that the trademark used must be registered, otherwise, it cannot be used. Voluntary registration is in line with the requirements of commodity economic development, but it by no means encourages the use of unregistered trademarks.

Not only are unregistered trademarks not protected by law, they are also at risk of infringement.

2. First to apply principle

The first to apply principle is a time concept. my country's "Trademark Law" stipulates: "Two or more applicants apply for registration of identical or similar trademarks on the same or similar goods. The trademark that was applied for first will be initially reviewed and announced, and the later application will be rejected. Trademark.

3. Registration principle

The registration principle refers to the principle of confirming the exclusive right of a trademark. The so-called use principle refers to the principle of exclusive use of a trademark. The registration principle is that as long as a trademark is approved and registered by the national trademark authority, its trademark exclusive rights will be protected by law, regardless of whether the trademark is actually used.

4 , The principle of protecting the exclusive right of registered trademarks

The principle of protecting the exclusive right of registered trademarks means that the state uses legal means, in accordance with the purpose of trademark legislation and in accordance with legal procedures, to grant trademark registration applicants the exclusive right to use trademarks, and to The legislative guidelines for its protection. Protection of exclusive rights to trademarks is the core and foundation of trademark legislation. Only when exclusive rights to trademarks are determined and guaranteed can the order in the field of commodity circulation be stable, competition can be legitimate, the commodity economy can develop, and consumption can flourish. Only in this way can the legitimate rights and interests of the registered trademark be protected.

(1) Principles of trademark registration;

1. First-to-file principle;

First-to-file principle refers to If two or more trademark registration applicants apply for registration of the same or similar trademark on the same goods or similar goods, then the applicant who applies for the trademark first can obtain the exclusive right to trademark, and the applicant who applies later can obtain the exclusive right to use the trademark. The trademark will be rejected. If the trademark is applied for on the same day, the first-used trademark will be initially reviewed and announced; if it is used on the same day or has never been used, the decision will be made by the trademark applicant.

It should be noted that although the trademark law adheres to the first-to-file principle, if it is an unfair means to preemptively register a trademark that is already used by others and has a certain reputation, the trademark will not be approved for registration.

2. Principle of voluntary registration;

Not all trademarks are compulsorily required to be registered. They can be used after registration or without registration. It mainly depends on the applicant’s own wishes. Under the principle of voluntary registration Under the law, the trademark registrant can enjoy exclusive rights to the registered trademark and will be protected by law; while an unregistered trademark can also be used in production services, but the user does not enjoy exclusive rights to the trademark and is not protected by law and has no rights. Others are prohibited from using the same or similar trademarks, except for well-known trademarks.

3. The principle of compulsory registration;

Although the principle of voluntary registration is implemented, our country stipulates that for a very small number of goods. The trademarks used on the website must be subject to the principle of compulsory registration. Currently, the products that must use registered trademarks include tobacco products.

4. The principle of distinctiveness;

The applied trademark must have Distinctiveness, convenient for consumers to identify. Originally, the most basic function of a trademark is to distinguish operators of the same goods or services, so as to facilitate consumers to choose their favorite products. Therefore, trademarks must be distinctive, while common names or signs lacking distinctiveness are not allowed. Registered as a trademark.

5. Principle of Prohibition of Preemptive Registration;

The Trademark Law stipulates that the trademark being applied for shall not be used to pre-emptively register a trademark that is already in use by others and has a certain reputation by unfair means, nor may it damage the trademark. existing prior rights of others. If a trademark is maliciously registered by others, the producers of the goods will suffer corresponding economic losses and the normal market economic order will be disrupted.

(2) Requirements for trademark registration;

The conditions for trademark registration are as follows:

1. Subject conditions: The applicant for trademark registration must be : Enterprises, institutions, social groups, and individual businesses established in accordance with the law.

Individual partnerships or foreigners or foreign enterprises from countries that have signed an agreement with China or participated in international treaties with the Chinese Communist Party or handled on the basis of reciprocity.

When you meet the above conditions and need to obtain the exclusive right to use a trademark, you must submit a trademark registration application to the Trademark Office on a voluntary basis.

2. Application conditions: Meet the requirements for classification of goods and services. Currently, my country’s trademark law implements the International Classification of Goods, which divides more than 10,000 kinds of goods and services into 45 categories, among which, There are 34 categories of goods and 11 categories of services.

When applying for trademark registration, the goods or services category for which the trademark is used should be determined according to the classification of the goods and services classification table. If the same applicant uses the same trademark on different categories of goods, the goods or services should be classified in different categories according to the product classification. Applying for registration according to the category can avoid unfair expansion of the scope of application of trademark rights, and is also conducive to the approval of examiners and the protection of exclusive rights to trademarks.

3. Procedural conditions: Comply with the procedural conditions for trademark applications by the trademark registration authority:

Legal basis: Article 5 of my country's "Trademark Law" stipulates that national regulations must use registered trademarks Products must apply for trademark registration. Currently, the state stipulates that there are two types of goods that must use registered trademarks: human medicine and tobacco products.