International Trademark Interoperability Projects Advance

Projects aimed at creating a more interoperable international trademark system are moving forward, according to the US Patent and Trademark Office and the Japan Patent Office (JPO). Among those in the works are the USPTO-led TM5 ID List Project, which USPTO Commissioner for Trademarks Mary Boney Denison said will lead to faster processing of high-quality trademarks around the world.

The “TM5,” consisting of the USPTO, JPO, EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO), and the State Administration for Industry and Commerce of the People’s Republic of China (SIPO), met for the first time in China since that country became a partner, Denison said.

She updated the status of the ID List Project, an “ongoing effort allowing TM5 partners to propose and vote on identifications of goods and services and their classification under the Nice Agreement,” she emailed.

The idea is to “transform the global trademark system by offering applicants a global, harmonised pick-list of identifications of goods and services when preparing trademark applications. If a harmonised ID is entered in an application for registration in any of the member TM5 offices, it will be accepted without a refusal, providing a clear advantage for trademark applicants,” Denison said.

The initiative “encourages a more consistent trademark application process which will result in fewer problems due to inconsistencies in terminology and classification from country to country,” Denison said. This is a big step toward more timely examination and registration of high-quality trademarks worldwide as more and more pre-approved IDs become available for applicants, she added.

The TM5 ID List Project website is here.

The JPO heads TM5’s Continuation/Expansion of Bad Faith Project, which aims to exchange information on laws, regulations and operational practices at each office regarding bad faith filings and pass it on to users.  The five agencies agreed to collaborate to create case examples on bad-faith trademark filings by March 2017, the JPO said.

In addition, the offices will hold joint workshops with user organisations under the aegis of the JPO and EUIPO-led “User Association Involvement Project.” TM5 partners also reported to representative users from industry groups and patent attorney organisations on the status of the projects, the JPO said.

The TM5 will hold its fifth annual meeting in China this fall, the JPO said.