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Introduction
Books and magazines are products that are very familiar to our daily lives. In recent years, e-books that can be viewed on smartphones have appeared, making it easier to read books and magazines while commuting to work or school, and it can be said that they are becoming more and more familiar to our lives.
Textbooks and teaching materials are also widely used in various educational industries (cram schools, English conversation schools, vocational schools, etc.), and these too have been increasingly digitized in recent years.
Books and magazines and texts and teaching materials used in educational settings may actually be classified as different goods/services from the perspective of trademark registration.
We have created this page to provide everyone involved in the book and magazine industry with useful information on trademark registration.
About the title of the “book”
Generally, the title of a book cannot be registered as a trademark, and even if it were possible to register it, it is thought that trademark rights would not apply to the act of using it as the title of a book. .
For example, if the title of the book ``The Power of Thinking'' (a topic of practical tips for office workers) is registered as a trademark, another author may use ``The Power of Thinking'' (a topic of tips for techniques in sports) as a book title. If this is not possible, the author will need to always check the existence of other people's trademark registrations before selecting the title of the book. Considering that copyright is a right that arises naturally at the time of creation, this places an excessive burden on the author.
About the “magazine” title
There are many magazines such as weekly and monthly magazines, and magazine titles can be subject to trademark registration. The reason why book titles and magazine titles are treated differently as mentioned earlier is that they differ in whether or not different content is published regularly.
For example, a monthly magazine has different content between January and February issues, and is published periodically. Readers who purchase monthly magazines will continue to purchase magazines even if the content is uncertain. This is because the desire to read the magazine again (trust in the magazine) has accumulated.
The same thing can be said, for example, when purchasing a product, ``beverage.'' The contents of the beverage may be changing little by little, but it can be said that the desire to drink it again (trust in the beverage) is accumulating.
Trademark rights protect trust in this product, and beverage names and magazine titles serve as trademarks as indicators for finding the product you are looking for.
In addition, even books may be subject to trademark registration, just like magazine titles. For example, it is the title of a serialized manga.
The first and second volumes of a serialized manga have different content, and are published periodically. Therefore, the title of a serialized manga could be subject to trademark registration because it has something in common with a magazine.
Regarding trademarks used in texts and teaching materials
Textbooks and teaching materials used at the cram school are used during classes. Services that impart knowledge, such as classes at cram schools, are mainly registered under Category 41.
So, in what category should I register the texts and teaching materials used in cram school?
Textbooks and teaching materials themselves fall under Category 16 goods, but if they are distributed in conjunction with services that provide knowledge, it is considered that registration under Category 41 is sufficient.
On the other hand, if a text, etc. is distributed as a stand-alone product, independent of the service of imparting knowledge, it will also need to be registered as a Class 16 product.
About e-books
In recent years, many e-books have been distributed, and many people are reading them mainly on smartphones and tablets.
Even if they have the same content, traditional paper books fall under the category 16 "Printed Materials" category. On the other hand, e-books that are downloaded and read on smartphones and tablets fall under the concept of ``electronic publications,'' which is a class 9 product.
In the case of e-books that cannot be downloaded (e.g. e-books that can only be read on the Internet), registration under Category 41 ``Provision of electronic publications'' is required.
”HARAKENZO more ” supports everyone in the book and magazine industry.
Books and magazines are products that are very familiar to our daily lives and are widely purchased by everyone, regardless of generation or gender.
”HARAKENZO more " We would like to help protect the intellectual property of everyone in the book and magazine industry, so please feel free to contact us.