Hardware Abrasives Industry Intellectual Property Protection

In the increasingly fierce competition in the hardware market, intellectual property protection has received increasing attention. Today, how companies can use intellectual property to protect themselves has become an important issue.

Protection of Trademark Exclusive Rights: It is particularly important to apply the principle of first priority. According to the report of Abrasive Abrasives, the acquisition of exclusive rights for trademarks in China must go through the registration process of the competent national authority, that is, a company wants to produce the same goods nationwide. In the process of providing the same service or enjoying the exclusive right of the brand, it must promptly submit an application for registration of the trademark to the Trademark Office of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce. In the process of applying for a trademark, the filing date is a very important factor because our country applies the principle of applying the principle in principle, that is, if other individuals or companies apply earlier than you, even if they apply for the same or similar trademark just one day earlier. , The trademark submitted after this is basically not registered. Although in the individual special circumstances, our country also applies the first principle, but only for different applicants on the same day filed the same or similar trademark applications. Therefore, for years of experience in the application of trademark exclusive rights, it is recommended that after the company has determined the name of the trademark, it should file an application for registration within the first time, and pay attention to the confidentiality of the trademark before registration to prevent others from maliciously registering the trademark.

The phenomenon of trademark rush registration is not uncommon, and all walks of life occur from time to time. Many are slogans of some well-known trademarks in the relevant industries, commonly known as "famous brands" and "rubbing the ball."

In the abrasive abrasive industry, a small number of companies have not paid enough attention to the protection of trademarks. Often when a newly established company or company launches a new product, it will first sell the product on the market for a period of time. If the sales are good, the trademark will be considered for registration and protection. As everyone knows, this method is actually very risky. If the trademark is not registered by someone else, then the company’s own trademark will be used after a period of time. It is fortunate to be able to approve the registration. The most afraid of this trademark is already someone else’s. Prior registration of trademarks, and because the company does not know the situation, has been a lot of production and sales. Then, in the end, it may infringe on another person's right to use the trademark and face infringement proceedings or compensation. The actual use of trademark exclusive rights, the previous period spent less than two thousand, and left unincorporated in the first period of production and sales caused by no intention of infringement, the company's response to litigation and compensation costs will be difficult to predict.

Classification principle of trademark registration: flagship product category is registered together with related categories more secure At present, it takes a year to a year and a half to complete the registration of a trademark in China. It does not enjoy the right to exclusive use of the trademark during the trademark application process, and it cannot perform rights protection. Therefore, the application time and the protected category of the corporate trademark are particularly important.

China's trademark registration must be protected in categories, covering a total of 45 categories, covering products or services provided by various industries. In the case of trademark registration for enterprises in the abrasives industry, in addition to trademark registration in the company's flagship product category, attention must also be paid to other categories related to it.

According to the latest edition of the 10th edition of the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of the Registration of Marks, the basic categories related to abrasives abrasives are mainly the following categories: Class I chemicals used in industry; Class III abrasives And its preparations; the sixth category of common metals and their alloys; the seventh category of metal cutting machine tools, cutting tools and other metal processing machinery, non-manual hand tools, etc.; the eighth type of manual grinding apparatus; enterprises based on their own products The characteristics may also involve other product categories.

When an enterprise applies for trademark registration, it must fully consider the categories in which the company's current products should be protected, and the categories associated with its own products should also be protected against registration. For example, some companies have just selected the seventh type of metal cutting tool for trademark registration, but have not registered the relevant third type of grinding material or the eighth type of manual grinding tool if their competitors or others are in the relevant categories. After the successful registration of the same trademark, it is easy to confuse the market and consumers. Secondly, if their products are accidentally used in these related areas in the future, they may constitute infringement, but they are not worth the candle.

Of course, companies engaged in the abrasives industry may not always produce their own products, but they also sell agents or provide processing services. How do these companies protect their trademark rights? According to China's current tenth edition The International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purpose of Trademark Registration also has a special category for trademark protection of such enterprises. The thirty-fifth category in the classification table is mainly for enterprises or individuals that provide import and export agents and sell services to others. This category can protect agents and distributors from legally using their own shoplifting and promotion procedures in providing various agency sales services. Its own service brand, etc.; Category 40, the 40th category, mainly protects the services of others for the comprehensive processing or processing of materials. In other words, if you are a processing enterprise of abrasives, you can also enjoy exclusive rights to the brand by registering a processing service mark in that category.

Trademarks are cybersquatting: Companies that can fight for rights through remedial measures may worry that if our company's trademark is registered by someone else, what should we do?

According to Article 30 of the "Trademark Law" in China, "For a preliminary examination of a trademark, anyone can raise an objection within three months from the date of the announcement." This is actually a remedy for intellectual property rights. If an enterprise finds that its trademark has been registered by someone else or someone has applied for a trademark similar to its own brand, it can stop it by submitting its objection grounds and corresponding evidence within three months from the date of the initial announcement of the trademark. The other party obtained the exclusive right to use the trademark. In case an enterprise misses the announcement period of three months, it can also maintain its own legitimate rights and interests through disputes or withdrawing improperly registered trademarks. However, the cost of rights protection and the requirements for applicants are relatively high. For example, a disputed applicant for a registered trademark must be the same or similar as a registered trademark of a prior applicant that the other applicant later applied for registration, and a registered trademark on the same or a similar product. The earlier applicant may apply for a registered trademark later. Within five years from the date of registration, the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board will apply for a ruling.

In summary, if companies want to fully protect their intellectual property rights and feel comfortable using their trademark rights, they must quickly apply for accurate registration and full defense.