Recently, some customers of our company have received notices from third parties about the cancellation of three-year non-use, and they are not very familiar with the cancellation and invalidation system regarding the cancellation of three-year non-use, and Also got into a big misunderstanding. Some registered trademark holders only know how to register a trademark and do not pay attention to the maintenance issues that need to be maintained during the use of the trademark. One-sided belief is that once a trademark is registered, it can be used without worries and as a matter of course. Let me briefly summarize the trademark revocation and invalidation system. I hope it will be helpful to trademark holders who have similar problems.
The revocation of a trademark right refers to a decision made by the trademark authority to cancel the trademark registration due to events after the creation of the trademark right that cause the trademark right to lose the basis for continued protection. There is no defect in the acquisition of trademark rights, and the revoked trademark rights are valid until they are revoked. Reasons for cancellation are usually caused by non-use of the trademark or irregular use of the trademark.
The invalidity of a trademark right means that the trademark authority declares that the trademark right has no legal effect from the beginning due to defects in the acquisition of the trademark right.
The difference between trademark right revocation and invalidation is:
(1) The reasons are different. According to the provisions of Articles 44 and 45 of my country’s Trademark Law, reasons for cancellation include changing the registered trademark or trademark registration matters on your own; transferring the registered trademark on your own; ceasing to use it for three consecutive years; goods using the registered trademark are shoddy or shoddy. , deceiving consumers.
(2) The time limits are different. You can apply for revocation of trademark rights if the cause of revocation occurs. Due to the uncertainty of the cause of revocation, there is no time limit for applying for revocation.
According to Article 41 of the Trademark Law, the time limit for applying for a trademark invalidation declaration is divided into two situations:
First, there is no time limit. If the absolute conditions for trademark registration are lacking, the Trademark Office, ex officio or other units or individuals, may request the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board to declare the trademark invalid without time limit; for trademarks that have been registered for malicious infringement of the rights and interests of well-known trademarks, the owner of the well-known trademark shall apply to declare the trademark invalid. There is no time limit for trademark invalidity. The former is the need to protect the interests of the public, while the latter reflects the special protection of well-known trademarks and the severe punishment of malicious behavior.
Second, five years. The prior right holder's right to request invalidation must be exercised within a certain period of time, and my country stipulates that it should be filed within five years from the date of trademark registration. (3) The legal consequences are different. The cause of revocation occurs after the trademark right is acquired, and the revoked trademark right becomes invalid after the revocation.
According to the provisions of Article 40 of the "Regulations for the Implementation of the Trademark Law", if a registered trademark is revoked, the Trademark Office shall announce it, and the exclusive right to use the registered trademark shall be terminated from the date of the Trademark Office's cancellation decision.
The cause of invalidity exists when the trademark right is acquired, and the trademark right that is declared invalid is invalid from the beginning. According to the provisions of Article 36 of the "Regulations for the Implementation of the Trademark Law", if a registered trademark is declared invalid (cancelled) in accordance with the provisions of Article 41 of the Trademark Law, the exclusive right to use the trademark shall be deemed to have ceased to exist from the beginning. Decisions or rulings regarding the invalidation of registered trademarks, judgments and rulings on trademark infringement cases made and executed by the People's Court before the invalidation was declared, decisions on handling trademark infringement cases made and executed by the industrial and commercial administration departments, and decisions that have been performed Trademark transfer or licensing contracts do not have retroactive effect; however, compensation shall be provided for losses caused to others due to the bad faith of the trademark registrant.
According to Articles 44 and 45 of the Trademark Law, the reasons for revoking trademark rights include:
(1) Changing the registered trademark or trademark registration matters on your own initiative. According to Articles 22 and 23 of the Trademark Law, the exclusive right to register a trademark is limited to the trademark (pattern) approved for registration and the goods approved for use. Trademark registration matters include the name and address of the registrant. If a registered trademark needs to change its logo, a new registration application must be submitted; if the name, address or other matters of the registrant need to be changed, a change application must be submitted. Therefore, when a trademark registrant uses a registered trademark, he shall not change the approved registered trademark pattern and registered registration matters on his own, otherwise it will be revoked in accordance with the provisions of Article 44 (1) and (2) of the Trademark Law .
(2) Self-transfer of registered trademarks According to Article 39 of the Trademark Law, if a trademark registrant transfers a registered trademark, he shall sign a transfer agreement with the transferee and report it to the Trademark Office Make an application.
After the application for transfer of a registered trademark is approved, it will be announced by the Trademark Office, and the transferee will enjoy the exclusive right to use the trademark from the date of announcement. Although the trademark registrant can transfer the registered trademark according to his own will, he must go through the transfer registration procedures. Otherwise, not only the transferee will not be able to obtain the trademark rights, but also according to the provisions of Article 44 (3) of the "Trademark Law", the transferor's Trademark rights will be revoked.
(3) Stop using the trademark for three consecutive years. The life of a trademark lies in its use rather than its registration. The reason why a trademark is protected is not the form of the trademark itself, but the goods or services it represents. If a registered trademark is not used for a long time, not only is there no need for protection, but it will also hinder others from using it. Therefore, the trademark laws of various countries stipulate that if a registered trademark has not been used for a certain period of time, the trademark can be revoked, and my country's Trademark Law is no exception. According to the second paragraph of Article 39 of the "Regulations for the Implementation of the Trademark Law", if a trademark registrant stops using its registered trademark for three consecutive years, anyone may apply to the Trademark Office to cancel the registered trademark. If the trademark registrant cannot provide evidence of use or the evidence is invalid without justifiable reasons, the Trademark Office will revoke its registered trademark. The so-called legitimate reasons refer to non-use or cessation of use of a registered trademark due to objective reasons beyond the control of the trademark registrant.
(4) Products using registered trademarks are shoddily manufactured, passed off as inferior, and deceive consumers. Article 45 of the Trademark Law stipulates: If a registered trademark is used to produce shoddy goods, pass them off as good quality, and deceive consumers, the industrial and commercial administration departments at all levels will order corrections within a time limit based on different circumstances, and may issue a notice or impose a fine. , or have its registered trademark revoked by the Trademark Office?
To sum up, the maintenance of trademarks during use is very important and should not be taken lightly. Intellectual property is also a kind of intangible property. Like our tangible property, it deserves everyone's attention. I believe you can see from the relevant news recently that the industry has gradually matured and intellectual property disputes have appeared frequently. Therefore, all applicants please pay attention and do preliminary maintenance work to avoid irreparable losses. At the same time, all trademark applicants are requested to pay attention to the status of their registered trademarks, track them in a timely manner, and also pay attention to the time when the Trademark Office issues documents, so as not to delay the defense deadline.