Intellectual property information

About the standard character system

What is the standard writing system?

Among trademarks consisting only of characters,A system in which the character typeface (standard characters) predetermined by the Commissioner of the Patent Office is announced and registered as the display mode of the trademark.About. If the following requirements are not met, an application can be filed by simply stating in the application the trademark for which the applicant wishes to register, based on the applicant's declaration of intention (Article 5, Paragraph 3 of the Trademark Law).

Examples of characters that are not recognized as standard characters

① Trademark with only a figure, trademark with a combination of figure and text
②Trademarks containing characters other than those designated by the Commissioner of the Patent Office
③ Character limit: Trademarks consisting of more than 30 characters (spaces are also added to the number of characters)
④Vertical writing trademarks, trademarks consisting of two or more columns
⑤Trademarks containing characters with different points
⑥Colored trademark
⑦Trademarks in which some of the characters are written graphically or in different fonts
⑧Trademarks written in special characters such as flower characters or special fonts such as cursive
⑨Trademarks containing consecutive spaces
 

 

Scope of trademark rights

The scope of trademark rights is:Scope of being identical or similar to the registered trademark (standard characters).
In other words, There will be no difference in the breadth of the scope compared to regular trademark registration. .
The scope of registered trademarks using standard characters is determined not by the trademark itself written in the application, but by replacing it with standard characters and using characters similar to the Mincho font.

Non-use cancellation trial

Regarding designated goods and services by a trademark right holder, etc. in Japan for three consecutive years or moreUse of trademarks that are the same as registered trademarks (including those that are the same based on social conventions)If this is not recognized, the registration may be canceled through a "non-use cancellation trial" (Trademark Law Article 50, Paragraph 1, Article 38, Paragraph 5).
for that reason,If you have decided on the typeface you will actually use, we recommend registering a trademark using that typeface..
 

 

Differences from filing a logo trademark (for trademarks consisting only of characters)

standard characters

Merit

・It is possible to apply even if the specific font of the trademark has not been decided.
・It is possible to search for prior trademarks based on the appearance, name, and idea of ​​the character string.
・Easy to manage and search trademarks

Demerit

・Compared to logo trademarks, they have poor design and are difficult to recognize as distinctive.
・If the trademark used becomes a distinctive logo, re-application may be required.
 

logo trademark

Merit

・There are no restrictions on the characters that can be used, and characters of different sizes can be used together.
・It also affects the design of typefaces.
・The design of the typeface makes it easier to recognize its distinctiveness.
・Can be colored, making it easy to leave an impression on consumers, etc.
・It is possible to apply for double-column characters such as European characters and katakana.

Demerit

・If the font used changes, it may be necessary to re-apply.

 

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