Protecting ‘well known’trademarks

Abstract

Name and fame have always been important. They provide a competitive advantage. This is not only important for natural person or places, but in the same way true in respect of intangible movable intellectual property rights, especially brands or trademarks - either registered or unregistered. For any organization or the holder of a trademark there are two important requirements- recognition of brand as a “well-known” trademark which requires instant protection and enhanced brand value. It is a moment of pride and symbol of success.
“Well-known” trade and service marks in most countries are provided with protection against those persons who infringes those marks in order to cause deception and confusion in the minds of the consumers. In order to provide protection to the “well-known” marks registration of the mark is not a necessary requirement. In many countries, they are also, under certain conditions protected for dissimilar goods and services. There is no specific detailed definition of well- known mark that is the reason many countries take benefit of the WIPO Joint Recommendation Concerning Provisions on the Protection of Well-Known Marks. The protection of well-known trademarks is a complicated and sensitive field in modern trademark law. The author strongly believes that an understanding of the topic can be studied on a larger scale, such as in respect of comparisons with the US legal system or with those of other countries.