Why You Should Register Your (Well-Known) Marks in India- Now!

The enactment of the Trade Marks Rules, 2017, has paved the way for formal registration of “well-known” Marks in India. Although India did recognise Well-Known marks earlier (through its Trade Marks Act, 1999, which came into force on September 15, 2003), there was no provision for their formal registration. After the 1999 Act, the Indian Trademark Registry made efforts to consolidate marks that, over a period of time, were recognised as “well-known” by various Courts, Tribunals, Registrar etc. and made available this list online which has 81 “well-known” marks. 

Going by the list, Trademark “Philips” seems to have been the first trademark that was recognized as a well-known mark in India back in 1983. However, it was the famous case of “BENZ” by Delhi High Court which made Well-known marks concept well known and accepted in India (1994 PTC 287).

WHY WELL-KNOWN MARKS?

Almost every brand is created with the aim of making it a top brand; however, only a few survive the test of time and of those few, just a fraction makes it to the big league.

Looking back in history reveals that brands such as Toyota, Microsoft and Apple, that are today globally-recognised, took several years to enter the league. By contrast, brands such as Google, Facebook and WhatsApp made it to the list in much shorter timelines. Of-course, the nature of their business, the increasing pervasiveness of the internet and the era of rapid globalisation also played a role in these brands achieving global recognition much faster.

There surely are certain benefits of “well-known marks”, the most important of them perhaps being protection from dilution, provided of course, that they continue to deliver superior, differentiated products and services.

WHAT IS A WELL-KNOWN MARK?

Section 2(1)(zg) of The Trade Marks Act, 1999, defines a “well-known trade mark” in relation to any goods or services, as  “a mark which has become so to the substantial segment of the public which uses such goods or receives such services that the use of such mark in relation to other goods or services would be likely to be taken as indicating a connection in the course of trade or rendering of services between those goods or services and a person using the mark in relation to the first-mentioned goods or services.”

What that means is - well-known marks are generally those that are acknowledged to have a high degree of reputation even beyond the areas of business of the proprietors of the marks. Such marks have attained such a degree of goodwill amongst general public (within a particular jurisdiction or even beyond) that even the use of such mark in relation to goods/services it is not generally associated with, would remind general public of the original source/product/service/proprietor. 

WHY DID INDIA AMEND ITS LAW TO PROVIDE PROTECTION TO WELL KNOWN MARKS?

India being a signatory to the TRIPS Agreement was obligated to amend its Trademark law by providing protection to well-known marks.

Articles 16.2 and 16.3 of the TRIPS Agreement contain certain provisions on well-known marks, which obligate member States to refuse or to cancel the registration, and to prohibit the use of a mark conflicting with a well-known-mark.

PROCEDURE FOR REGISTRATION OF WELL-KNOWN MARKS

Below we try to address a few questions like 'how to register a well known mark' and 'how much does it cost' to register a trademark.

Application for registration of Trademark:

As per Rule 124 of the Trade Marks Rules, 2017, any person may file a request for determination of a trade mark as well-known (interesting to note that here it has been avoided using the term “registration”, using instead the word “determination”). Each such request shall be accompanied by:

1. A statement of case describing the applicant’s rights and claim over such mark being a well-known mark;
2. Evidence in support of applicant’s rights and claims;
3. Details of a court order, if any in which such mark was recognised as a well-known mark; and
4. Requisite fee (INR 1, 00,000.00).

The Registrar may call for further such documents/information as he thinks fit for the determination of a mark as “well-known”.

Prosecution & Registration:

If the application is found in order, the Registrar may, before determining a trade mark as well-known, also invite objections from the general public. Such objections must be filed within thirty days from the date of invitation.

Notwithstanding the above, if it is found that a trade mark has been erroneously or inadvertently included in the said list, the Registrar may, at any time, remove a trade mark from the list of well- known marks, after hearing the concerned party.

WHO SHOULD REGISTER?

All proprietors who believe their marks to be “well-known” marks must consider making an application for determination of their mark as a well-known mark.

Further, proprietors of the marks that have been recognised by a Court of Law or Registrar as a well-known mark must also consider this registration with the Trademark Registry.

WHY TO REGISTER?

Once a trademark is determined by the Indian Trademark Registry to be as a well-known mark, the proprietor can be assured that no one else can register an identical or a similar mark in any of the 45 classes of goods and services in India. Registration would definitely safeguard the proprietors (of well-known marks) from the trouble of opposing every identical/similar mark every time a third party tries to register or to contest the registration of marks which may have been erroneously registered in any of the 45 classes.

HOW IS DETERMINATION/REGISTRAION OF A “WELL-KNOWN” MARK MADE?

As per Section 11(6) of the Trade Marks Act, 1999, The Registrar shall take into account several factors in determining whether a mark can be recognised in India as “well-known”. Such factors include the following:

1. the knowledge or recognition of that mark amongst the relevant sections of the public in India as a result of promotion of the trade mark;
2. the duration, extent and geographical area of promotion/use of the trade mark;
3. the duration and geographical area of any registration/application of that trade mark under this Act to the extent they reflect the use or recognition of the trade mark;
4. successful enforcement of the trade mark to such an extent that such trade mark has been recognised as a well-known trade mark by any court or Registrar.

Further, Section 11(7) of the Act states that the Registrar shall, while determining whether a trade mark is a “well-known” mark for the purposes of sub-section (6), also take into account:

1. the number of actual or potential consumers of the goods or services;
2. the number of persons involved in the channels of distribution of the goods or services; and
3. the business circles dealing with the goods or services, to which that trade mark applies.

Section 11(8) of the Act provides that where a trade mark has been determined to be well-known in at least one relevant section of the public in India by any court of Law or the Registrar, the Registrar shall consider that trade mark as a well-known trade mark for registration under this Act.

CONDITIONS NOT NECESSARY FOR DETERMINATION AS A WELL-KNOWN MARK

Certain myths and misconceptions prevail that in order to be a well-known mark, the mark has to fulfil various other criteria- for example, it should be registered/used in India etc. However, Section 11(9) of the Act clarifies that for determination of a mark as a well-known mark in India, the following conditions are NOT necessary to be fulfilled:

1. that the trade mark has been used in India;
2. that the trade mark has been registered;
3. that an application for registration of the trade mark has been filed in India;
4. that whether the trade mark is well known in; or has been registered in; or in respect of which an application for registration has been filed in, any jurisdiction other than India; or that the trade mark is well-known to the public at large in India.

CONCLUSION

By making provisions for registration of well-known marks, India has made it easier for entities with well-known marks to safeguard their rights. As many other countries are still contemplating to bring about such legislations by this amendment India has definitely taken the lead here. Although a few organisations have questioned the validity of the provisions relating to registration of well-known marks, none has yet challenged them in a court of law. Proprietors of reputed brands now have an opportunity to register their marks as “well-known” marks in India in order to not only safeguard their marks against unauthorised and unlawful use but also to protect them from the risk of dilution by inferior product/services. 

This article was originally published at http://www.foxmandal.in/why-you-should-register-your-well-known-marks-in-india-now/.   Please visit http://www.foxmandal.in/blog/ for more interesting reading.

India: The Trademark Rules, 2017: Process made simpler, Faster, Start-up friendly but dearer

In a constructive attempt to streamline, simplify and expedite the trademark registration processes, the Trade Mark Rules, 2017 have been notified and came into effect from March 6th 2017. In consonance with the National IPR Policy, 2016, the Rules also introduce specific provisions for Start-Ups and Small Enterprises to stimulate and promote innovation and creativity among such entities.

The Salient Features of the Rules are as follows:

GENERAL:

• Definition of Start-Ups and Small Enterprise introduced.
• Number of Forms has been reduced from 74 to 8. 
• Procedures relating to registration as Registered User of trademarks have been simplified. 
• Provisions have been introduced to serve all applications, notices, statements and other documents electronically - from applicants to the Registry and vice-versa.

OFFICIAL FEES:

• Government Fee applicable for various trademark registration related activities has been simplified by reducing the number of entries to just 23. 
• Filing fee of a new application has been increased by about 125 %. (INR 9,000.00).
• Renewal fee increased close to 100% (INR 10,000.00). 
• Fee for expedited registration process increased by 100% (INR 40,000.00).
• Handling fee for Madrid Applications increased by 150% (INR 5,000.00).
• 50% discount on the new filing fee for Individuals/Start-Ups/Small Enterprise. 
• To promote e-filing, the fee for online filing has been kept 10% lower as compared to fees for physical filing.
• Fee for extra characters (beyond 500 characters) in the description of goods/services has been done away with.

EXPEDITED PROCESSING OF APPLICATIONS:

Provisions laid down for expediting the registration from filing through registration on payment of higher fees. Earlier, only examination of application could be expedited.

REPRESENTATION OF SOUND MARKS:

Sound marks applications to be also accompanied by reproduction in MP3 format (not exceeding thirty seconds’ length).

EXPEDITE OPPOSITION PROCEEDINGS:

• Provision to file counter statement to the notice of opposition as soon as it is made available online. 
• The requirement of serving a copy of opposition notice shall be dispensed with if a counterstatement has already been filed based on electronic copy of notice available online. 
• No scope for seeking extensions in case of filing evidences. 
• The number of adjournments for hearings reduced to 2 for each party and each adjournment shall not be allowed for more than 30 days.
• Mandatory costs up to INR 10,000.00 to be awarded to either the Applicant or the Opponent (depending on the case) for not contesting opposition proceedings thereafter. 

WELL-KNOWN TRADEMARKS:

• Modalities for determination of a trademark as a well-known mark have been introduced for the first time. 
• Application to be filed with an exorbitant fee of INR 1,00,000.00 per mark and only through e-filing.

VIDEO-CONFERENCING OF HEARINGS:

Provisions have been laid down to hold personal hearing through video- conferencing or other audio-visual communication devices.

RENEWAL OF REGISTRATION:

The window for renewal of registration now opens one year prior to the date of expiration as against six months under the old Rules.

EXTENSION OF TIME:

Any extension of time, as specifically allowed under the Trademarks Act, 1999, shall not exceed one month.

ASSIGNMENT OF TRADEMARKS:

• Providing a duly certified copy of original document, instrument or deed purporting to transfer the title will suffice; an original instrument or deed is no longer necessary. 
• Filing of Affidavit along with the application for recordal of assignment is no longer required. 

STATEMENT OF USE:

• All applications (except with the intent to use) shall contain a statement of use with respect to ALL goods or services mentioned in the application.
• An affidavit testifying such use (if application claimed prior user date) along with the supporting documents has to be filed.

Visibly Faster Turnarounds By Indian Trademark Registry

This morning, when I opened my inbox, one email in particular surprised me. The email contained our first ever “e-certificate” for a trademark application filed just about one year ago! In the past, such prompt action by Indian IP Offices was almost unheard of. But clearly, the technology-enabled procedural changes introduced over the past year or so have begun to bear fruit.

The issues faced by the Registry in printing and dispatching hard copy (Registration Certificates) are quite well-known. On many occasions, the certificates did not reach the intended recipients. This not only caused delay and inconvenience to stakeholders but also imposed needless cost on the Registry as well as Applicants (who had to apply for a duplicate certificate).

About a month ago, the Indian Trademark office, via its notification dated 28^th July 2016, had notified the new system of sending only e-certificates (Registration), and doing away with the century old system of sending hard copies. This was made effective from 1^st August 2016 for all trademark applications:

• published in the Trade Marks Journal on or after November 23^rd, 2015;

• where no request for amendment filed on behalf of the applicant is pending disposal;

• where Trade Mark registry’s database contains the original application;

• where no compliance requirement is pending on part of the applicant; and

• which have not been specifically prohibited for registration by the order of any court, IPAB or any competent authority.

With the adoption of the new system it appears that the Registry is taking every possible step to eliminate the root cause for delay and thus expedite the registration process and deliver on the higher standards outlined in India’s new IP Policy.

INDIAN TRADEMARKS REGISTRY ABANDONS PENDING APPLICATIONS – GIVES GRACE PERIOD TO REVIVE

The Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trademark of India (CG) vide its notification dated 4^th April 2016 has given an opportunity to all Applicants and authorised Agents of Trademark Applications which were recently abandoned by the Indian Trademark (TM) Registry to (re)submit their responses or make submissions (where response was not submitted earlier) by 30th April 2016.

This action will benefit the several thousand pending Trademark applicants whose applications were abandoned by the Indian Trademarks Registry due to lack of responses.

For the last several years, the Indian TM Registry had stopped sending Office Actions through the postal service. Instead, they uploaded them online on the TM Registry website. However, there were always delays and other issues in the process. It appears that due to discrepancies and mismanagement, several files and documents were misplaced and the TM Registry could not locate the filed responses which apparently caused a chaos at the Registry. However, instead of attempting to trace the missing documents, the Registry took the decision to simply abandon all applications where the Office Actions were issued (on/off line) and the TM Registry could not trace the responses submitted.

After much ado, the TM Registry has granted a grace period of 3 weeks (until 30th April 2016) allowing all applicants who had filed their responses to re-send copies of their responses. The same grace period also applies to those who did not submit responses because they did not receive the Office Action even though it was uploaded / sent through post. All applications that do not receive responses by 30th April 2016 shall be treated as abandoned.

On the one hand, the move to abandon the applications has been criticised widely as a sign of the Registry not holding itself accountable. On the other, it is also seen as a smart move to clear off the overload that is sometimes caused by non-serious applications.

If you or any of your clients have filed any trademark application in India, you may wish to check the status with your concerned Attorney. If it has been “abandoned”, you still have time till 30^th April 2016 to take remedial action and submit a response.

If you are a Fox Mandal client, be assured that we are checking the status of your applications and shall be reaching out to the TM Registry to take necessary actions. Also, if your application has been examined, you must send your instruction to file a response immediately so a suitable response can be drafted and filed on or before 30th April 2016.

PS: As per the latest news, as a result of several writ petitions being filed before different High Courts, on 5^th April 2016, the Delhi High Court vide its Interim order has stayed the order of CG. We await the final order and shall keep you informed.