Trademark squatting refers to the act of applying to register someone else’s trademark or well-known trademark on non-similar goods or services.

Trademark squatting is an act of fact-finding. Generally, the ownership of the trademark is revoked and the trademark ownership of the original owner is re-established. Generally, the trademark owner will not bear other infringement liabilities.

Trademarks are used by producers and operators of goods on the goods they produce, manufacture, process, select or distribute, or by service providers on the services they provide, to distinguish goods or services. source. A sign with distinctive characteristics consisting of text, graphics, letters, numbers, three-dimensional signs, sounds, colors, or a combination of the above elements is a product of the modern economy.

Expressions of trademark squatting

(1) Preemptive registration of unregistered trademarks

China’s Trademark Law stipulates: Two or more trademark registration applications If a person applies for registration of an identical or similar trademark on the same kind of goods or similar goods, the trademark applied for first will be initially reviewed and announced, and the application of other people will be rejected and will not be announced. There will be no objection or objection within 3 months of the announcement period. If the objection is not established, the registration will be approved. China’s Trademark Law does not grant any exclusive rights to the user of an unregistered trademark. If a certain trademark is used without registration, the user has no right to prevent others from using the same product, service or similar product or service using the same trademark. Or use a similar trademark or apply for registration first. Only when the user of an unregistered trademark applies for registration on the same day as the non-user, based on the current situation of trademark use and registration application in China, the applicant who used the trademark first will be taken into consideration so that he can be approved for registration. This scope is limited, it cannot restrict others from applying for registration, and it must not violate the first-to-file principle. The user of an unregistered trademark chooses not to apply for registration of the trademark he uses. This is his right; if he has made a large amount of advertising investment for the unregistered trademark but has not applied for it, or it is later than others who have used the same or similar goods or Applying for trademark registration on the service, but others apply for trademark registration first, this can only show:

1. Independent decision-making leads to one thing over another;

2. There is a weak awareness of trademark rights. This certainly does not provide him with legal protection. In countries where the exclusive right to trademark is registered, as long as the business entity has a strong awareness of trademark rights and applies for trademark registration before or at the same time as using the trademark, there will be no preemptive trademark registration. The view that all preemptive registration of trademarks is illegal essentially advocates the acquisition of exclusive rights to trademarks through use, thus fundamentally negating the system of obtaining exclusive rights to trademarks through registration, which is contrary to China's Trademark Law.

Article 32 of China’s Trademark Law: Application for trademark registration shall not damage the existing prior rights of others, nor shall unfair means be used to preemptively register a trademark that is already used by others and has a certain influence. Therefore, it is conditionally confirmed that preemptive registration of a trademark that has been used by others is prohibited by law. While adhering to the registration principle and the first-to-file principle, the law has made reasonable adjustments to the absolute first-to-file principle. It is emphasized that the first application must be based on the principle of good faith, and it is not allowed to steal a trademark that has been used by others and has established a good reputation as one's own trademark to apply for registration, which makes up for the shortcomings of the absolute registration principle and prevents the occurrence of unfair situations in fact.

(2) Preemptive registration of registered trademarks. Registered trademark rights are rights determined by national laws, but are subject to geographical and time restrictions.

Regionality determines whether a trademark will be registered in a certain country or countries. protection in a specific country or region, but cannot obtain protection in countries or regions other than the country or region of registration. This may cause A to register trademark a for goods or services of type b in country C. If A does not register the same application in country D, B may register trademark a or a trademark similar to trademark a in country b. For goods or services of type B or similar to type B, apply for registration in country D or apply for registration before A and obtain approval. Although such behavior of preemptively registering a trademark may seem morally questionable, there is nothing legally wrong with such registration.

In the past, due to the relatively weak trademark awareness of Chinese operators, their trademarks owned in China and already had a certain or good reputation in some countries and regions were preemptively registered by others in that country or region, resulting in the failure of Chinese operators to The party cannot use the original trademark registered in China in that country or region and eventually withdraws from the market in that country or region; or although it continues to use the trademark and occupies the market, it pays a high price to obtain the transfer of trademark ownership from the other party; Some have to start a new "stove".

I suffered a loss in terms of economic interests, but I was powerless legally. However, with the development of my country's market economy, it has become increasingly common for some domestic enterprises and individuals to rush to register well-known foreign trademarks in China in order to seek economic benefits.

(3) Preemptive registration of well-known trademarks is more complicated than preemptive registration of unregistered trademarks and registered non-well-known trademarks

After a well-known trademark is preemptively registered by others in other countries or regions, Whether the trademark exclusive right of the original owner of the well-known trademark can be protected in that country or region ultimately depends entirely on the determination of the competent authority of the country or region where protection is requested based on its own laws. If it is believed that the preemptive registration by others is legitimate, the original trademark owner will lose the ownership of the trademark in its jurisdiction and cannot be protected; conversely, if it is believed that the registration is unfair, it can obtain protection.

(4) The issue of conflict of rights

To solve the issue of conflict of rights of different types of intellectual property rights, the current law has a basic principle, which is the "principle of protection of prior rights". This principle embodies the principles of fairness and good faith in civil law, and has specific provisions in patent law and trademark law. Judging from the provisions of current laws, regulations and rules, the rights and obligations arising from patent rights and trademark rights are subject to different legal adjustments. There is no distinction between who is higher and who is lower, who is stronger and who is weaker. If a conflict of rights occurs, the "principle of protection of prior rights" applies.

Based on what has been said above, trademark squatting occurs frequently in our country, but our country has also issued relevant regulations for trademark squatting in order to better protect the legitimate rights and interests of victims. As long as there are no If registered, the trademark owner can file an objection. If it has been registered, he must provide evidence to prove that he is the owner of the trademark, and he must submit it within five years.

Legal basis:

Article 32 of the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China

Application for trademark registration shall not damage the existing trademark rights of others. Priority rights shall not be used, nor shall unfair means be used to preemptively register a trademark that is already used by others and has certain influence.