Interesting Trademarks, Domain Name Disputes, Cybersquatting, TM Merchandizing, Licensing, Trademark tips and more

 

Interesting Trademarks, Domain Name Disputes, Cybersquatting, TM Merchandizing, Licensing, Trademark tips and more, presented by the Trademark attorneys and experts of BananaIP Counsels, India’s Premier New Age IP Firm.

TRADEMARK QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Your brand is what other people say about you when you are not in the room – Jeff Bezos.

Trademark Stats from the Indian Trademark office

The Trademark Office has been a little slow this week considering there has been an overall decrease in the number of applications that has been examined by the Registry. The statistics can be seen below:

Particulars Last week This week Change in %
Total Trademark applications examined by Trademark Office 5056 3193 A decrease of 36%
Total applications disposed through show cause hearings 731 799 An  increase of 12%
 
Total applications published in the trademark journal  7147 6087 A decrease of 12%
Total registrations granted 4935 3151 A decrease of 36.1%
Total hearing notices issued 1654 799 A decrease of 51.6%
Total renewal notices issued 3957 1748 A decrease of 55.8%

Total number of marks published in trademark journal

Sr.no Name of office Publication
1. MUMBAI 1198
2. AHMEDABAD 856
3. KOLKATA 429
4. DELHI 717
5. CHENNAI 1619
6. INTERNATIONAL REGISTRATION DEVISION 268
7. Total Trademarks published in Journal 6087

INTERESTING TRADEMARKS

Donald trump – YOU’RE FIRED

‘YOU’RE FIRED’ is certainly an interesting trademark to have but Donald Trump was not lucky enough to have the same registered. The United States President, back in 2004 had tried to trademark the phrase ‘YOU’RE FIRED’ but unfortunately did not get registration for the same, as it was opposed by a pottery store named YOU’RE FIRED’, owned by Susan Brenner. The catchphrase actually gained recognition on Trump’s reality TV show – Apprentice, consequent to which he wanted to trademark the phrase.

Nintendo – IT’S ON LIKE DONKEY KONG

Nintendo, one of the largest gaming companies in the world got the phrase ‘IT’S ON LIKE DONKEY KONG’ registered before the USPTO, allegedly to create hype for its then upcoming game ‘Donkey Kong Country Returns’ which was launched in 2010.

Paris Hilton – THAT’S HOT

You might end up in legal trouble if you decide to use the brand ‘THAT’S HOT’ in relation to apparels in the US. Paris Hilton, the renowned celebrity has successfully registered the mark ‘ THAT’S HOT’ in 2007 before the USPTO. The mark picked up momentum in the early 2000’s in her TV show ‘The Simple Life’.

INDIAN TRADEMARK NEWS

International Trade Mark Filings from India

The recent WIPO statistics indicate that only 151 Applicants from India had utilized the Madrid Protocol for filing Trademarks in 2016. However, the total number of foreign applications that designated India increased to 11,105.

Salman Khan ventures in to Smart phones segment with ‘BeingSmart’.

The Bollywood star, who already owns the clothing brand ‘Being Human’, has now ventured into the smart phone industry and has applied for registration of the mark  ‘Being Smart’ for his upcoming smartphones models. The proposed ‘Being Smart’ Phones will  run on android and will cost below Rs 20, 000. ‘Being Smart’ is expected to compete with leading smartphones like Oppo, Vivo and Xiaomi.

DOMAIN NAME DISPUTES

WIPO Cybersquatting Cases Rise

WIPO’s UDRP reported that the number of cybersquatting complaints increased by 16 percent in 2016. About five thousand three hundred disputes were filed in the year. Complaints emerged from 109 countries, US, France and Germany being the toppers.

WIPO Domain Name Disputes from India

WIPO’s UDRP report indicated that there was a 36% increase in the domain name disputes initiated by Indian entities in the year 2016.  In 2016 a total of 34 new domain name disputes were initiated before the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Centre under the UDRP.

INTERNATIONAL TRADE MARK NEWS

WIPO, Trade Marks and Industrial Design Filings Rise in 2016

Trade Mark Filings through the Madrid System increased by 7.2 percent in 2016. Around fifty two thousand Madrid applications were filed in the said year. Industrial Design filings using the Hague system increased by around 13 percent. Around eighteen thousand design applications were filed in 2016. L’Oréal, Glaxo and BMW were among the top Madrid Application filers. India received more than eleven thousand designations.

Thirty Eight Trump Trade Marks Approved in China

About thirty eight trade marks containing the name ‘Trump’ have been approved by the Chinese TM Office. The trade marks deal with goods and services ranging from hotels to bodyguards. The trade marks were filed in April, 2016.

TRADE MARK MERCHANDIZING AND LICENSING

Famous Five Products to hit stores soon

Merchandize around Enid Blyton’s Famous Five series is set to hit the stores soon. The estate of Enid Blyton has tied up with Bulldog to launch stationery, food products and gifts. The company is also working on merchandizing Secret Seven.

Popular Dog and Cat Charity Collaborates for Brand Extension

Licensing.Biz has reported that Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, a UK Charity established in 1860, has partnered with Point. 1888 to extend its brand into retail stores for  new products. The partnership is expected to make new products available to consumers in retail stores. The licensing revenues will be used to further the charity’s objectives of re-homing dogs and cats.

BANANAIP’S TRADE MARK TIP OF THE WEEK

A company using a trade mark for a long time must consider filing an application for well-known mark listing by the trade mark registry. The new trade mark rules have opened this opportunity, and being recognized as a well-known mark can increase the financial value of the mark substantially. Needless to state, the mark must be famous in order to merit this listing.

The featured image is the property of BananaIP Counsels and it must not be used without prior permission.

 

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