Trademark registrations
The territory of trademark protection
When talking about trademark protection and China, it is important to remember that there are several jurisdictions in China with their laws and trademark registries, etc. In practice, this often means that a trademark must be registered in several jurisdictions to reach the necessary protection within China.
Different jurisdictions in China are:
- Mainland-China
- Hong Kong
- Macau
- Taiwan
Trademark and patent registrations protect only in that jurisdiction or territory where it was registered. Also, the trademark registration protects only the products or services that were specified in the trademark application.
Different trademark classes for different products
International Nice Classification consists of 45 classes. Classes 1-34 are about goods and classes 35-45 are about services. In Hong Kong and Macau, one registration can cover the whole class, for example, class 8. In mainland China and Taiwan, the applicant must choose items within an individual class which make trademark registration in said jurisdictions a bit more complicated.
You can browse Nice Classification online: https://www.wipo.int/classifications/nice/nclpub/
We advise you with choosing the correct classes.
Keep your trademark registrations valid
After receiving the trademark registration certificate the trademark will be registered in China and Hong Kong for ten years, and in Macau for seven years. The trademark registration can be renewed indefinitely.
Glossary
What is a trademark? A trademark is a mark that differentiates goods or services of a company or a person from goods and services provided by other companies and people. The trademark can be letters, characters, images, numbers, 3D marks, sounds and combinations of colours, or any combination of the elements just mentioned.
- IP, Intellectual Property is other than physical property, including technology, visual image, database and process.
- IPR, Intellectual Property Rights are entitlements to exploit commercially exclusively some specific IP at a specific geographical area.
- A patent is used to protect commercial exploitation of the invention by the inventor exclusively, by registering the invention in a particular country or countries.
- Trademark is a distinctive mark (word, figure etc.) which distinguishes a product or a service of a company from the products and services of other similar companies.
- NDA, Non-Disclosure Agreement is a contract to keep certain information confidential from outsiders.
- First-to-File principle, when registering it matters who files the registration documents first as opposed to who originally made the invention or created the trademark.
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PRD GROUP helps you choose and register the right trademark protection for any of the four different jurisdictions in China.
