How to Settle Trademark and Trade Name Conflict in China

By Albert Chen

For the prior approval on the company name by the administration of industry and commerce as well as the preliminary examination by the trademark authority in China, no material checks on any conflict against first rights would be conducted. And that has resulted in the numerous conflicts between the trade name and trademark. In today’s post, you could see our opinions on the settlement of the conflict.

I. The administrative way

It is feasible to settle the trademark and trade name conflict through administrative way in China. By Opinions on Several Issues concerning the Settlement on the Conflict between Trademark and Trade Name (the “Opinions”) issued by the SAIC (the State Administration of Industry and Commerce), the conflict occurred within a province shall be settled as in charge of the provincial administration of industry and commerce, and those involves different provinces, shall be settled by SAIC.

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A Recorded High Objection to Mao Tai’s Trademark Application

By Albert Chen

According to the report, the renowned white liquor distillery Mao Tai’s application of the “Guo Jiu Mao Tai” trademark is facing a recorded huge amount of objections. Since the announcement of its preliminary examination on 20th July, it has seen totaled 95 objections to the applied 4 marks within the 3-months publication. And the objectors have been more than 40 units or individuals. For the case, we once posted an essay on its analysis: “Will Alcohol Trademarks Implying Them the State Liquor Be Registered in China?” For more details of the analysis, please check today’s post.

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Will Alcohol Trademarks Implying Them the State Liquor Be Registered in China?

By Albert Chen:

By the latest trademark gazette of State Trademark Office of China on 20th July of 2012, “Guo Jiu Mao Tai”, which implies it the state liquor, has come through the preliminary examination and has been published. The news soon agitated the argument among the industry and academic circle, and other brewers like Feng Jiu (SSE:600809) and Luzhou Laojiao (SZSE: 000568) have all expressed their oppositions on it and planed to block the registration of “Guo Jiu Mao Tai”.

As retrieved on the state trademark website, I find it’s not the trademark’s first application. Early in 2011, the applicant China Kweichow Moutai Distillery Co., Ltd (the “Maotai Company”) tried to register the trademark, yet it was refused by the authority and the same for the follow on 5 applications. The current preliminarily approved marks are concentrated in Class 33, covering the fruit wine, Bitter, wine, aperitif, spirit, and alcohol beverage excluding beer, etc.

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