Frequently Asked Questions About Hongkong Trademark Registration

Q: what strategies should I take to protect my trademarks in Hongkong and China?
A: here are some strategies you should consider:

Adopt a trademark that is different from others and will not infringe upon the rights and interests of others. The meaning of infringement of a well-known trademark may include the use of the trademark or similar trademark in different goods. Therefore, even if your product is very different from the product covered by the well-known trademark, you may also be accused of infringing upon the rights of others.
The trademark registration and guarantee system in the mainland is not the same as Hongkong, so you should register your trademark in two places. If a trademark is registered only in the mainland, the trademark will not be automatically protected in Hongkong.
You should register your trademark as soon as possible to ensure that you can use the trade mark in your business and take immediate action against any infringement.
If you are going to grant a license for the use of the trademark, you should make a complete concession plan.
If someone infringes your trademark in Hongkong, you should take action according to the Trade Marks Ordinance.
If you find that the goodwill and reputation of your goods or services in Hongkong are being impersonate by others, you should take legal action.

Q: well known trademarks need not be used or enjoyed reputation in Hongkong, China. Will it not be deleted because it is not used?

A: even if the owner does not operate or possess goodwill in Hongkong, the well-known trademark can also be protected to a certain extent (if the owner has the right to oppose the same or similar trademark registration application filed on different goods' services), but the protection obtained through registration (except trademark protection) must be supported by actual use.

Q: what other protection does a well-known trademark have?

Answer: if the use of a trademark constitutes unfair use or damage to the well-known character or reputation of a well-known trademark, the anti infringement legal procedure of the well-known trademark can be extended to different goods or services. Even if there is no operation in Hongkong, the use of well-known trademarks in violation of the same or similar goods or services is quite likely to confuse the public. The well-known trademark owner has the right to issue an injunction. A well-known trademark can be protected by defensive trademarks.

Q: is the new trademark law still distinguishable from trademark registration in the old law? Part A and B?

A: when the new trademark law becomes effective, the existing registered trademarks have been transferred to the new register. The new register is different from the register of the remaining legislation (forty-third chapter), and does not distinguish the trademark registration from part A and B.

Q: when can we apply for registration in Hongkong, China, in accordance with the Convention's priority?

A: Although the registration application can be made at any time within the stipulated six month priority period, registration should be made as early as possible, and priority should be claimed while applying for the registration. Once a registration application is made, the Trademark Office will temporarily quote this trademark as an objection to other applications that have not been announced before. If the prior trademark application has been published and registered in the Hongkong knowledge rights bulletin, this does not affect the registration of a priority trademark because the former trademark is not a "prior trademark" that can resist the latter trademark. If the trademark application is still in the "Objection Period", that is, within three months of publication or extension period of the period, the priority person may make priority through filing an objection notice.

Q: is it necessary to submit the priority document of the convention?

A: unless the trademark registries do so, they will not be required to submit them. Generally speaking, when there is a prior application that may conflict with the application trademark, the trademark registrar will require the Convention's priority document.

Q: Although the priority has been claimed under the Trade Marks Ordinance, due to the inadequacies of the application, the application date has been delayed, leading to more than six months of priority period. Is there a loss of priority?

Answer: if the application date is six months after applying for the priority of the Convention, the priority is lost.

Q: how do we categorize goods and services?

Answer: the eighth edition of the Kniss classification applies to the 559th chapter of the Trade Marks Ordinance. There are 45 categories of goods and services. For more details, please visit the World Intellectual Property Organization's Web site. Http://www.wipo.org/classifications/en/ ) (English version only)

Q: how does the Trademark Registry examine mutually conflicting registration applications?

A: on the basis of a similar or similar prior application, the objection of the Registrar to another registration application is only temporary unless the prior application is allowed to register (see the definition of "prior trademark" in the fifth section of the trademark Ordinance). When the prior application is granted registration, the Trademark Office will formally oppose the application for another registration according to the thirteenth (1) of the trademark rules. At this stage, the applicant will be required to eliminate the objection in accordance with the time limit specified in the thirteenth section of the trademark rules. When the objection is still temporary, that is, prior application for registration and the formal objection to the latter registration application, the applicant may still take measures to eliminate the reasons for the objection, such as deleting the goods and services already included in the application instructions.

Q: how does the intellectual property department handle the application for trademark registration?

A: the examination procedure of registration application can be divided into four stages.

- check whether there is any deficiency in the application;

- whether the application for examination is in conformity with the provisions of the trademark Ordinance;

- accept the application and publish the application details; anyone may object to the application;

- registration of the trademark concerned and issue a certificate of registration.

After the resumption of sovereignty over Hongkong by the Chinese government, the Hongkong Special Administrative Region has a separate patent system to implement the Hongkong patent regulations and the Registered Designs Regulations. To facilitate the application procedures of applicants for the mainland of China, the Hongkong Special Administrative Region and other countries and regions, the relevant issues are as follows:

I. questions concerning the application of patent applications by legal persons and residents of the Hongkong Special Administrative Region
(1) submission of international applications
The Patent Office of China is an admissibility board of the Hongkong Special Administrative Region legal person and residents who submit an international application according to the Patent Cooperation Treaty.
The legal persons and residents of the Hongkong Special Administrative Region may also submit international applications directly to the World Intellectual Property Organization International Bureau.
(two) submission of China's national patent application
The legal person and resident of the Hongkong Special Administrative Region shall submit the Chinese national patent application to the Patent Office of the Chinese patent office, in accordance with the provisions of the Patent Office of the PRC on the issue of patent applications in Hong Kong and Macao in August 21, 1995.

Two. The issue of patent protection for international applications in the Hongkong Special Administrative Region.
(1) if the applicant designates China in the international application and wishes to apply for patent protection in Hongkong, it shall, in addition to the relevant formalities for the Patent Office of China, also register the approval procedures for the registration of standard patents or grant the request for short-term patents in accordance with the relevant provisions of the patent regulations of the Hongkong.
(two) after requesting the international application for Chinese invention patents to enter the state of China, the applicant shall, in order to obtain the protection of the standard patent in Hongkong, register the standard patent with the Hongkong Intellectual Property Office, that is, within six months from the date when the application is published by the Chinese Patent Office in Chinese, or the application has been published by the International Bureau in Chinese, within six months from the date of the notification issued by the Patent Office of the Chinese patent office, the registration procedures shall be processed with the Intellectual Property Office of the Hongkong, and the registration and approval procedures shall be registered with the Intellectual Property Office of Hongkong within six months from the date of the grant of the patent right by the Chinese patent office. The above procedure applies to the announcement date or the notification date of the national application number is issued on or after June 27, 1997.
(three) in order to make the international application of the Chinese utility model patent be protected by the short-term patent protection of Hongkong, it should, within six months from the date of entering the state of China, or within six months from the date of issuance of the notice of the national patent application of the Patent Office of China, issue the request for the grant of short term patent to the Intellectual Property Office of Hongkong.
The above procedure is applicable to the notification of the national application number. The date of issue is on or after July 1, 1997.

Three. The issue of patent protection of the invention patent application in the Hongkong Special Administrative Region.
To apply for the invention patent application to the Patent Office of the PRC, in order to obtain the protection of the standard patent in Hongkong, the registration procedures for standard patents shall be conducted to the Intellectual Property Department of Hongkong according to the relevant provisions of the patent regulations of the Hongkong, that is, the registration request procedure shall be processed to the Intellectual Property Department of Hongkong within six months from the date the application is promulgated by the Chinese patent office, and the registration and approval procedures shall be registered with the Intellectual Property Office of Hongkong within six months from the date of the grant of the patent right by the Chinese patent office. The above procedure applies to the application on or after June 27, 1997.

Four. Questions on the protection of short term patents or registered designs in Hongkong.
In order to obtain short-term patent protection in Hongkong (except for the above international application channels) or the protection of registered designs, the relevant procedures shall be handled with the Intellectual Property Office of Hongkong according to the patent regulations of Hongkong or the regulations on registered designs.
In accordance with the provisions of the patent regulations of the Hongkong, Hongkong's short-term patent protection is required, and a search report should also be submitted to the international search unit, including the Chinese patent office, or the patent authority designated by the Hongkong Intellectual Property Office.

Intellectual property services: registration of Hongkong trademark and Hongkong patent registration

Ruifeng international intellectual property service center is a key link in developing high value-added industries and promoting innovation and technology. The goal is to help businesses and inventors to protect their development and design results through registered patents, designs and trademarks, and to increase economic returns.
The services of the centre include enterprises and individuals from Hongkong and overseas. They assist them in applying for trademark registration, patent and design registration to the government of the Hongkong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) or the world's countries (including Mainland China and Taiwan).

Registered Hongkong trademark and Hongkong patent registration service.

Implementing the "patent application plan" of the Hongkong SAR government.
Intellectual property database search, including information about the latest patents and trademarks of major countries in the world.
Assist in the application for intellectual property rights, including patents, designs and trademarks.
Organizing and actively promoting training courses on intellectual property rights, including seminars and seminars.
Consultants and diagnostics, including the provision of intellectual property consultancy services and the solution of the difficulties.
Introduce the latest invention and patent information in the world at the first time.

Intellectual property information service (1): registration of Hongkong trademark and Hongkong patent registration

Intellectual property information service can be divided into the following three categories:
The patent information intellectual property service center can obtain the world patent literature through the computer terminal. We provide a range of search options to meet your needs for patent information.

Topic retrieval: This includes retrieval of a product's creativity, technology, or production process.
The company / assignee searches - the name and information of the transferee can be determined through search. In addition, if we want to know a publicly patented project owned by a company worldwide, we only need to retrieve it according to the full name of the company.
Related patent search: new products or technologies that have potential in international markets usually apply for valid patent registration in multinational countries throughout the world. Related patent searches can help you determine whether similar patents have been registered in selected countries.
Patent legal status search: we can help you identify the legal status of each invention to the patent offices, including termination of patent rights, review, reassignment, patent validity complaints, etc.
In addition to the above searches, the centre also provides inventor search, novelty search, existing technology search and application number search. Industrial product design information retrieval includes major developed countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom.
The design patent of an applicant.
To determine whether a product is identical to the product that is still in the design protection period.

Trademark information retrieval includes:
A set of letters in a prefix, suffix or marker.
A trademark owned by a company or individual.

Intellectual property information service (two): registration of Hongkong trademark and Hongkong patent registration

Applications for intellectual property rights
For ideas that are unique and innovative, they should also apply for registration of patents or designs of intellectual property as soon as possible before the production or publication, so as to obtain legal protection. Trademark registration can also protect the rights and interests of trade mark holders and prevent them from being misappropriated by illegal traders.
Trademark registration
A successful trademark can enhance the goodwill of the trademark holder. This will not only bring huge profits, but also promote the business of trademark holders. In order to protect the rights and interests of these intellectual property rights, trademark holders should register their trademarks. Once the trademark application is approved, the applicant has the exclusive right to use the trademark. In addition, when the trademark rights and interests are infringed upon, the applicant may resort to legal action to prohibit his infringement and recover damages. Therefore, the best way to protect is to register their trademarks.
Any enterprise or individual may entrust the center to apply for trademark registration in Hongkong, the mainland and even the rest of the world. The center can assist the applicant to fill in the power of attorney, including the applicant's information, product category, trademark design and so on. After the entrustment is completed, the center begins to apply for registration for the applicant. From the declaration, publication notice to the certificate, the company will provide professional advice for the applicant. Generally speaking, it takes about 12 months to apply for trademark registration.
patent application
Patents can protect technological innovation and innovation. Anyone who invent innovative and practical process methods, machines, products or components of materials, or improvements to them, can apply for patents. Most countries in the world have their own patent system. In a country that has obtained a patent, a patent owner has the right to prevent others from making, using or selling their invention in this country. In most countries, the longest patent protection period is twenty years. In order to maintain the validity of the patent, annual fee must be paid, usually once a year.
Many countries outside the United States refuse to provide patent protection for inventors who have made public their inventions before applying for patents, so inventors should avoid publishing or selling their inventions before applying for patents.
The Hongkong Productivity Council has established close cooperative relations with patent agents in major countries. These countries include the United States, Britain, Japan, China, Canada, Germany and so on. Therefore, the center can assist inventors to apply for patents in various countries. The center will prepare a clear and clear invention profile for the information provided by the inventor to assist the patent agent in writing instructions for patent application. After the patent application is submitted, the centre will continue to provide support services to applicants in the process of examination and approval.

There are two types of patent applications in Hongkong:
I. standard invention patent
To apply for a patent in Hongkong, it must first be examined and approved by the designated patent office (China, the United Kingdom and the European Patent Office). The first registration application must be submitted in Hong Kong within 6 months after the application is announced. Within 6 months after the approval of the patent authority, the second registration application must also be submitted in Hong Kong. After registration, the renewal fee is payable on time, and the longest patent right can be extended to 20 years. The centre can provide enquiries before filing patent applications, document preparation, application agents and patent renewal services, as well as overseas application services.
Ii. Hongkong short term patent registration
The applicant may apply directly to the Hongkong Intellectual Property Office through the centre for short term patents, with the longest patent right of 8 years, and Hongkong's short-term patent directly obtained without any approval from the foreign patent office.

design application
Appearance design is used to protect the appearance, style, decoration or appearance of objects. The registered designs include textiles, toys, watches and clocks, the appearance of consumer electronics and household products. The design must remain confidential and undisclosed before submitting the application. Otherwise, registration may be invalidated.

The outstanding appearance design is one of the most important factors for the success of the product, because it can attract customers' attention and hobbies, so as to increase sales and profits. In order to avoid being plagiarized by other competitors, appearance registration is a low cost and the most effective protection method. If registered designs are infringed upon, if the rights and interests of the design are infringed, the property holder may take legal action to stop the infringement and obtain compensation through the court injunction order. Designs, like other goods, can be transferred, leased and licensed.
Before submitting the application, the applicant must provide photographs or drawings of different angles of the registered goods. These photos or drawings must be submitted together with the application form. After the application is submitted, the design registration office will make a review. Once accepted, the application will be gazetted to allow the public to respond to the application. If there is no objection to the application, the applicant will be issued a certificate of registration.
The protection of design is regional. If you want to get the protection of a certain area, you have to apply for registration to the area. Due to different registration systems, the protection period of design is about ten to twenty-five years, such as twenty-five years in the United Kingdom, fourteen years in the United States and ten years in China.

Intellectual property appraisal Advisory Service
Our center and overseas cooperation institutions have rich experience and knowledge in intellectual property rights. They can assist applicants to assess whether their products and technologies meet the requirements for patent qualification, whether the compilation of patent files is in line with specifications and the requirements of the applicant's "claims" can protect the interests they need. In addition, suggestions on trademarks, patent infringement prevention and rights disputes are also provided. The contents of the discussion are strictly confidential.

Intellectual property rights in mainland China:
Over the past 20 years, China has committed itself to establishing a legal system for protecting intellectual property rights, and has enacted laws and regulations to protect patents, trademarks and copyrights, in order to crack down on computer software theft, infringement of trade secrets and counterfeit trade names, and to curb unfair competition and "domain name rush registration".

Since the promulgation of the trademark law in 1982, China has formulated a series of laws and regulations on the protection of intellectual property rights, including the 1984 patent law and the 1990 copyright law, and a number of more specialized regulations have been promulgated, including 1991 Computer Software Protection Ordinance and 1993 anti unfair competition law. In order to meet the requirements of accession to the WTO, China will continue to improve its legal framework and law enforcement system for the protection of intellectual property rights and provide a favorable business environment.