Indian Trademark Statistics for July (Second Week), Uttarakhand Thulma Filed for GI, New US Trademark Rules for Foreign Applicants, Shemaroo Collaborates With Macmerise, Max Healthcare Defeats Maxcure Hospitals in Trademark Infringement, and more brought to you by the Trademark Attorneys at BananaIP (BIP) Counsels.
TRADEMARK QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Every Trade Mark you Build adds to the financial value of your business, much more than your tangible assets” – Dr, Kalyan C. Kankanala.
INDIAN TRADEMARK STATISTICS
Last week, the Indian Trademark Office have had a tremendous increase in its work pace. The total number of applications disposed through show cause hearings has increased by thirty nine percent (39%). Similarly, the total hearing notices issued in the trademark journal has increased by two hundred and twenty six percent (226%). However, there has been a decrease of sixteen percent (16%) in the total renewals notices issued.
Weekly Indian Trademark Statistics
| Particulars | Last Week | This Week | Change in % |
| Total Trademark Applications Examined by Trademark Office | 6057 | 9868 | An increase of 63% |
| Total Applications Disposed through Show Cause Hearings | 4286 | 5942 | An increase of 39% |
| Total Applications Published in the Trademark Journal | 7193 | 8354 | An increase of 16% |
| Total Registrations Granted | 6544 | 8634 | An increase of 32% |
| Total Hearing Notices Issued | 2884 | 9391 | An increase of 226% |
| Total Renewals Notices Issued | 2152 | 1806 | A decrease of 16% |
Trademark Statistics by Office
Total Number of New Applications Received from July 3rd, 2019 to July 10th, 2019
| Sr. No | Jurisdiction | New Applications | Examined | Published | Registered |
| 1 | AHMEDABAD | 926 | 593 | 839 | 843 |
| 2 | CHENNAI | 1516 | 885 | 1544 | 2201 |
| 3 | DELHI | 2823 | 1759 | 2781 | 2664 |
| 4 | KOLKATA | 422 | 280 | 423 | 332 |
| 5 | MUMBAI | 1854 | 1199 | 1759 | 2140 |
| Total | 7541 | 4716 | 7346 | 8180 |
Yearly Trademark Statistics
Trademark Statistics from January 1st, 2019 to July 10th, 2019
- Total Number of Trademark Applications Filed – 179933
- Total Number of Trademark Applications Examined – 82913
- Total Number of Trademark Applications Published – 114197
- Total Number of Trademark Applications Registered – 157281
INDIAN TRADEMARK UPDATES
Max Healthcare Defeats Maxcure Hospitals in Trademark Infringement
Max Healthcare Institute Ltd, a famous chain of hospitals, filed a trademark infringement suit to restrain Sahrudya Health Care Pvt. Ltd. from using the trademarks MAXCURE HOSPITALS, MAXKURE, MAXCURE MEDICITI for hospital services which is fraudulently similar to Max Healthcare’s registered trademarks MAX, MAX HOSPITAL. It was further stated in the suit that the marks MAXCURE and MAXKURE were recently adopted by Sahrudya in 2015-2016 and earlier were known as Sunshine Hospital and Mediciti Hospitals. In arriving at the decision, the Delhi High Court observed that there is no doubt that the two marks are deceptively similar and are likely to cause confusion to the public at large. The Court further noted that the word MAX is not an abbreviation in English language of the word ‘maximum’ and also, the word MAX is not a generic word in relation to hospital and healthcare services. Therefore, the Court passed a permanent injunction against Sahrudya from using the trademarks MAXCURE HOSPITALS, MAXKURE, MAXCURE MEDICITI or any other mark similar to the marks of Max Healthcare. Furthermore, Sahrudya was instructed to change the names within 30 days of the order.
INTERNATIONAL TRADEMARK UPDATES
New US Trademark Rules for Foreign Applicants
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has recently announced new trademark rules under which all foreign-domiciled trademark applicants, registrants and parties are required to be represented by a US-licensed attorney only. This rule applies to all applicants whose permanent legal residence or principal place of business is outside the United States. The new guidelines will come into force from 3rd August 2019. The goal of this new rule is to increase USPTO customer compliance with US trademark and USPTO regulations and to improve the accuracy of trademark submissions to the USPTO.
Misguided Law; Kim Kardarshian Wins Lawsuit against Fashion Brand
Reality TV star Kim Kardarshian has added a sizeable amount to her fortune by winning a lawsuit against Missguided, a UK based fashion retail company. In the lawsuit filed against the company, Kim claimed that her “persona and trademarks” were used to sell replicas of her outfits by tagging her on Instagram. Since Missguided did not appear in the case, the California Central District Court ordered the fashion company to pay $2.7 million and $59,600 in legal cost. Misguided has also been stopped from using Kardarshian West’s trademarks in connection with the “sale, marketing, or distribution of its products.”
BRAND LICENSING UPDATES
Kingfisher Resurfaces in New Zealand
New Zealand based brewing company DB Breweries, has acquired the licensing rights of Kingfisher beer from Bangalore based United Breweries. Owned by Heineken Asia Pacific, DB Breweries will now manufacture and distribute Kingfisher beer in New Zealand and Australia from 2020. Kingfisher beer has been sold in New Zealand for over a decade and DB Breweries will be assuming the licensing rights currently held by Independent Liquor NZ, owned by parent company Asahi Beverages.
Shemaroo Collaborates with Macmerise
Shemaroo Entertainment, a leading Indian content power house, has announced a partnership between its official Bollywood licensing and merchandising brand Yedaz and Macmerise, India’s largest licensee in the mobile accessories business. The agreement between both the companies will allow Macmerise to have access to iconic Bollywood movie characters, dialogues and designs to be used in digital gadgets and accessories like phone cases, covers and many more. The merchandise will be available on e-commerce sites such as Amazon, Flipkart, Tata Cliq and Paytm Mall.
GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION UPDATES
Uttarakhand Thulma Filed for GI
Woolen handmade blanket industry of Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand is said to represent a rich cultural heritage of India. Thulma blanket is a very exclusive traditional hand-woven product of Uttarakhand mainly woven by its Bhotiya tribal community. Thulma is specialized for its fine quality hairy effect, bright colour combinations and captivating motifs. The foundation of the blanket weaving is done by cotton thread. The blanket is said to be very warm and used up to minus 30 degrees in the Himalayan regions. The GI application was filed by Gauri Shankar Nidhi Swayat Sahkarika, Pithoragarh and Neo Integrated Development of Himalaya Society in May, 2019.
Authored and compiled by Shreya Chaddha & Uma T.S
About BIP’s Trademark Attorneys
The Trademark News Bulletin is brought to you by the Trademark/Copyright, Licensing & Transactions Strategy Divisions of BananaIP Counsels, a Top IP Firm in India. Led by Sanjeeth Hegde, BIP’s Trademark Attorneys are among the leading experts in the field. If you have any questions, or need any clarifications, please write to [email protected] with the subject: Trademark News.
The weekly trademark news initiative is a part of BananaIP’s pro bono work and is aimed at spreading IP awareness. You are free to share the news with appropriate attribution and backlink to the source.
Disclaimer: Kindly note that the news bulletin has been put together from different sources, primary and secondary, and BananaIP’s reporters may not have verified all the news published in the bulletin. You may write to [email protected] for corrections and take down.
