In this article, we share with you why the International Trademark Registration and Madrid Protocol is very important. In the article we wrote about the brand before, we shared a lot of information about the definition of the brand, the types of brands, why we need a brand, how we should decide on the brand name, and how the trademark registration process is in our country. In our article, when we were defining the brand, we said, "Your brand is your signature of your product!" You are an entrepreneur and now you are taking firm steps towards realizing your dreams. On the one hand, while continuing to produce new and creative ideas, on the other hand, you want to protect your new product and your brand.
For this, the first thing you need to do is to protect the signature of your product in your country. Trademark registration in our country is carried out by the Turkish Trademark and Patent Institute. As you know, the rights arising from the trademark registration are valid only in the country where you registered. If you are one of those who say I want to go further and want my product to be protected internationally, you will find out what you need to do for international trademark registration procedures by reviewing this article.
Processes Related to International Trademark Registration
The general process of international trademark registration is as follows.
Research and Evaluation Process
Application Process
Follow-up
Appeal Process
renewal process
Process Related to Other Transactions
Registration Processes
Registration Costs
Required documents
Brand Research and Evaluation Process
Registering your trademark internationally is an important step. Registration of your brand abroad brings longer process and more cost compared to the transactions made in the country in terms of both process and cost. For this reason, it is of great importance that this process is carried out in a healthy and correct way from the beginning to the end.
As we have told you before, your product and brand, which you have created with great care, are registered in the country or countries where you have registered and are protected by being within the scope of the legal protection legislation of those countries. Therefore, it is not possible to talk about the protection status of your trademark in that country, which has not been registered in any other country abroad.
Applications for the registration of your trademark abroad can be made on a collective and national basis, based on the legal protection legislation of the countries and international agreements. There are three options listed below for trademark registration procedures in a country abroad.
CTM (Community Application under the European Union)
OAPI
International Trademark Registration (Madrid)
CTM (Community Application Under the European Union) System
CTM is known as Community Application under the European Union. In this registration system, as in the Madrid protocol system, it is made collectively for the countries of the European Union. It is possible to provide protection for the trademark in all countries within the European Union with a single application. Applications are made to the Internal Market Harmonization Office (OHIM) in Alicante, Spain. This system is less preferred than the Madrid system. However, this system has its advantages. These;
. Affordable costs,
. In the future, in every country that joins the European Union, the protection of the trademark will be protected by this system without any action.
In addition to all these, these system applications are not dependent on the domestic trademark application or registration. In addition to the advantages of the system, it also has a significant disadvantage. In this system, if the trademark is rejected in any country, it is considered rejected for all European Union countries and is not accepted.
OAPI (African Industrial Property Rights Organization)
The OAPI system stands for African Industrial Property Rights Organization. This system shows the industrial property system established between African countries, similar to Madrid and CTM systems. Its headquarter is Cameroon. It is possible to obtain protection with your trademark applications made here. It is possible to list the countries within the Union as Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea, Guinea-Bisau, Ivory Coast, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal and Togo.
Madrid System
You can apply to the offices of the countries where you want to register your product one by one. However, the Madrid System eliminates this difficulty and by applying a single application process, you can provide protection for your product by making a single transaction in more than one country.
Two agreements have been made for the international protection of trademarks. These;
. Madrid Agreement (1981): It concerns the international registration of trademarks.
. Madrid Protocol (1996): It is the Madrid Protocol regarding the Madrid Agreement, the implementation of which began on 1 April 1996. This protocol was also signed in our country with the date of 1 January 1999.
