1. The concept of three-dimensional trademarks
A three-dimensional trademark, also called a three-dimensional trademark, is a trademark that is presented in a three-dimensional image as a three-dimensional logo, the overall appearance of the product, or the physical packaging of the product. To put it simply, it is a three-dimensional trademark.
2. The earliest three-dimensional trademark (three-dimensional trademark) abroad
The first country in the world to protect three-dimensional trademarks was France. As early as 1858, the French Cadbury Company produced a After a period of sales, Cadbury's chocolates with groove shapes have been widely accepted by consumers. When everyone sees chocolates with this shape, they know that they are Cadbury chocolates. At this time, there are other chocolates. Chocolate companies also began to produce chocolates in this shape. As a result, Cadbury's sales dropped significantly. Cadbury sued several other chocolate production companies to the court, saying that several other companies were producing chocolates with the same shape as his company. Consumers misunderstood that the chocolate was produced by Cadbury and asked the court to prohibit other companies from producing chocolate in this shape. Finally, after investigation, the court found that the chocolates of the same shape produced by other companies had indeed caused misunderstandings among consumers, and ruled that other companies were not allowed to produce chocolates of this shape. From then on, the three-dimensional trademark was born. The French Legislative Council followed up quickly and immediately passed legislation to protect three-dimensional trademarks and determined the legal status of three-dimensional trademarks. Of course, it would be difficult to protect this three-dimensional shape on chocolate products now, because this shape is obviously to make large pieces of chocolate easier to divide, making it more convenient for us to eat.
3. The earliest three-dimensional trademark in China
In April 2003, the Trademark Office of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce approved the registration of DEGONY and the three-dimensional image applied for by Beijing Degoni Culture and Art Development Co., Ltd. trademark. This means that China’s first three-dimensional trademark has been officially applied for registration successfully.
IV. The development of three-dimensional trademarks
In the more than one hundred years from 1858 to the present, the protection of three-dimensional trademarks has developed rapidly. So far, three-dimensional trademarks have been registered and protected. There are more than 80 countries and regions. These more than 80 countries can be divided into three types: one type directly explicitly stipulates in the trademark law that the shape of goods and packaging is allowed to be registered as a three-dimensional trademark for protection. This accounts for the majority. ; The other category is that although there is no clear provision in the trademark law to protect three-dimensional trademarks, the prosperous regulations allow trademark registration on commodity packaging. There are not many countries in this category, such as Afghanistan, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Djibouti, Finland, etc.; the third category Countries that do not explicitly exclude the registration of three-dimensional trademarks in the trademark law and grant registration protection in fact, such as Greece, Iceland, Austria, Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, Haiti, Honduras, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and El Salvador , Nicaragua, Panama, Liberia, etc.