The origins of trademarks can be traced back to ancient times, when craftsmen would imprint their signatures or "marks" on their works of art or utilitarian products. What is the process for registering a trademark in Tianjin now? The editor has brought you relevant knowledge about the "trademark registration process", which may be what you need.

What documents are required for trademark registration?

1. When applying for registration with an enterprise as the applicant, a copy of the applicant's business license should be submitted, and the original copy of the enterprise's "Business License" should be presented or in The copy of the applicant's business license shall be stamped with the applicant's official seal.

2. 6 trademark pictures (one should be attached to the back of the application form, and 5 should be submitted). The trademark pattern provided must be clear and easy to paste. It must be on smooth and durable paper or replaced by a photo (printing on A4 paper is also acceptable). The length and width of the pattern should not be greater than 10 cm and not less than 5 cm. If the direction of the trademark pattern is unclear, arrows should be used to indicate the top and bottom.

3. Applications, trademark registration applications and other relevant documents should be typed or printed, with both sides printed. The applicant's address should be consistent with the address in the business license. Neither the address of the business department nor the mailing address can be used as the address in the application, otherwise it will not be accepted. If you do not entrust an agency, leave the agency-related items blank. The "category" and "goods and services" in the "Application for Trademark Registration" should be based on the goods or services provided by the applicant, and refer to the eighth edition of the "International Classification of Goods and Services for Trademark Registration" (Nice Classification) And the Trademark Office fills in the "Classification Table of Similar Goods and Services" modified according to the above-mentioned international classification table, which can be queried on the China Trademark Network and the lobby of the Trademark Office. If you select more than ten categories of goods or services, the registration fee will be increased by RMB 100 for each additional category. When filling in the types of goods and services, only write the name, do not write the specific number, and stamp the cut-off stamp after the enumeration is completed (the cut-off in brackets can be used instead).

4. Submit the materials and pay the fees to the Trademark Office. The Trademark Office will send an acceptance notice to the applicant in about 2 months. If the materials are incomplete or have some errors, the trademark The Bureau will send a notice of trademark correction, and the applicant must correct the application materials according to the notice within one month.

Trademark registration process

Trademark registration process 1. Formal review

After formal review, the application procedures are complete and the application documents are filled in in accordance with regulations, the Trademark Office will issue Send a notice of acceptance.

If the application procedures are incomplete or the application documents are not filled in as required, a notice of rejection will be issued and returned, and the application date will not be retained.

If the application procedures are basically complete or the application documents basically comply with the regulations, but if supplements and corrections are needed, the Trademark Office will issue a notice of supplements and corrections to the trademark registration application. If the applicant makes corrections within the time limit and returns it to the Trademark Office, the application date will be retained; if the applicant fails to make corrections or makes corrections beyond the time limit, the Trademark Office will issue a notice of rejection and return it, and the application date will not be retained.

Trademark registration process 2. Substantive examination

After passing the formal examination, the trademark application enters the substantive examination. After substantive examination, any trademark application that complies with the relevant provisions of the Trademark Law will be initially reviewed and approved by the Trademark Office and announced.

If the application is rejected, a rejection notice will be issued to the applicant.

If the Trademark Office believes that the contents of the trademark registration application can be revised, it will issue an examination opinion. If the applicant responds within the time limit, the Trademark Office will continue the examination.

For trademarks that have been preliminarily approved after review, the China Trademark Office will announce them in the "Trademark Announcement".

Within three months from the date of announcement, anyone can object to a trademark initially approved by the China Trademark Office.

If there is no objection or the objection is ruled not to be established, the China Trademark Office will approve the registration, issue a trademark registration certificate, and announce it in the "Trademark Announcement"; if the objection is ruled to be true, the registration will not be approved.

Request for review

If the applicant is dissatisfied with the Trademark Office’s rejection of the trademark registration application during the trademark registration process, he or she may request a review from the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board. The Trademark Review and Adjudication Board will make a final decision on whether to grant registration or not, and notify the applicant in writing. If the party concerned is dissatisfied with the Trademark Office's objection ruling, he or she may request a review from the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board. The Trademark Review and Adjudication Board will make a final decision and notify the parties in writing.

Under what circumstances can it not become a trademark?

(1) Only the common name, graphics, and model of the product

The common name, graphics, and Models are unanimously recognized and used by everyone in a certain industry. Some of them are unique features that distinguish this product from other products. No one should have a monopoly. Using common names and graphics as trademarks may also harm the interests of other practitioners in the same industry and violate the principle of fair competition. Since these marks themselves do not have the function of distinguishing different operators, however, when the common names, graphics, and models of these goods are used by a certain operator as trademarks for their own goods, and through use, consumers are able to distinguish the goods with their marks. If it is distinguished from other goods of the same kind, it should be considered to have acquired distinctiveness and can be registered as a trademark. For example, "PDA" was originally a common name for handheld computers. When a manufacturer of a certain handheld computer uses it as a trademark for its own products, through use, it can be completely distinguished from "Business Communication" and "Celebrity Brand" of similar products. When it is distinguished from "Kuaiyitong", it can be considered to be identifiable and can be registered according to current laws. Of course, ?PDA? was registered at a time when the law at that time clearly prohibited the registration of common names of goods as trademarks. This was not because it had gained recognition through use, but entirely because the examination department of the trademark authority did not understand ?PDA? Caused by an "accident" over the common name of a handheld computer. It must be pointed out that even if such a trademark is registered, the trademark owner has no right to prohibit others from using the common name on similar goods, because it is inherently "public property."

(2) It is prohibited to directly use words and graphics that express the characteristics of the goods as trademarks that only directly indicate the quality, main raw materials, functions, uses, weight, quantity and other characteristics of the goods.

, the reason is the same as the aforementioned prohibition on using the common name and graphics of this product as a trademark. It should be pointed out that what is prohibited by law is only signs that directly represent the quality, main raw materials, functions, uses, weight, quantity and other characteristics of the goods, while signs that indirectly represent or imply certain characteristics of the goods are It is not prohibited because signs that indirectly express or imply certain features of goods may often be trademarks with distinctive features. Even if it is a mark that directly indicates the characteristics of the product, it can also acquire distinctive features through use. For example, the "Mengniu" trademark used for milk and other dairy products, although it directly indicates the raw materials and origin of the product, after a long period of time and large-scale use, Use, has achieved very significant characteristics and recognizability. Similar trademarks would have encountered many difficulties if they wanted to be registered before the Trademark Law was revised in 2001. However, according to the provisions of Article 11 of the revised Trademark Law, it is easier to obtain approval for registration.

(3) Lack of distinctive features

Trademarks should have distinctive features, which is a positive condition for applying for registered trademarks. If a mark lacks distinctive features and is not identifiable, it cannot be obtained. Registration, but after trial, a connection is established between the trademark and the goods, and it obtains distinctive features and is easy to identify, it can be registered.

Trademark registration process Company trademark and trademark registration