Indian Trademark Statistics for April (Third Week), Bieber Beauty Trademark, Trade Dress Infringement over Surf Excel, Endangered Species Footwear Collection and more, brought to you by the Trademark Attorneys at BananaIP (BIP) Counsels.
TRADEMARK QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Define what your brand stands for, its core values and tone of voice, and then communicate consistently in those terms” –Simon Mainwaring
INDIAN TRADEMARK STATISTICS
In the last week, the Indian Trademark Office has been slow in its day to day activities. The total number of applications disposed through show cause hearing has decreased by forty percent (40%). Similarly, the total number of registrations granted has decreased by sixty eight percent (68%).However, the total number of hearing notices issued has increased by one hundred and forty one percent (141%).
Weekly Indian Trademark Statistics
| Particulars | Last Week | This Week | Change in % |
| Total Trademark Applications Examined by Trademark Office | 6318 | 3991 | A decrease of 37% |
| Total Applications Disposed through Show Cause Hearings | 8714 | 5187 | A decrease of 40% |
| Total Applications Published in the Trademark Journal | 7783 | 5956 | A decrease of 23% |
| Total Registrations Granted | 7812 | 2527 | A decrease of 68% |
| Total Hearing Notices Issued | 4617 | 11117 | An increase of 141% |
| Total Renewals Notices Issued | 1916 | 1841 | A decrease of 4% |
Trademark Statistics by Office
Total Number of New Applications Received from April 10th, 2019 to April 17th, 2019
| Sr. No | Jurisdiction | New Applications | Examined | Published | Registered |
| 1 | AHMEDABAD | 864 | 259 | 473 | 251 |
| 2 | CHENNAI | 1269 | 326 | 1257 | 785 |
| 3 | DELHI | 2696 | 732 | 1559 | 404 |
| 4 | KOLKATA | 364 | 109 | 306 | 207 |
| 5 | MUMBAI | 1684 | 446 | 1640 | 743 |
| Total | 6877 | 1872 | 5235 | 2390 |
Yearly Trademark Statistics
Trademark Statistics from January 01st, 2019 to April 17th, 2019
- Total Number of Trademark Applications Filed – 101984
- Total Number of Trademark Applications Examined – 46808
- Total Number of Trademark Applications Published – 100892
- Total Number of Trademark Applications Registered – 80239
INTERESTING BRAND NEWS
Bieber Beauty Trademark
Following in the footsteps of her singer husband Justin Bieber, Hailey Bieber has also applied for a new trademark application. The American model has applied for the mark ‘Bieber Beauty’ under class 03 for cosmetics and beauty products. The mark is will be used in a new line of beauty products.
INDIAN TRADEMARK UPDATES
Trade Dress Infringement over Surf Excel
Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) filed an interlocutory petition against an individual named Ankit from manufacturing and selling detergent powder under the marks ‘MR Excel’ and ‘MS Excel’ with packaging and color schemes deceptively similar to HUL’s registered trademark, ‘SURF EXCEL’. The High Court of Calcutta opined that the infringing detergent packets are a colourable and deceptive imitation of the label and trademark of HUL which is a well-known trademark. The Court, further opined that it is prima facie satisfied that Ankit’s products are infringing HUL’s registered trademarks and therefore granted an ad interim injunction in favour of HUL.
INTERNATIONAL TRADEMARK UPDATES
Chanel Defends Coco
Chanel, the well known French fashion brand, has successfully stopped Luong Quoi Coconut, a Vietnamese retail brand, from infringing on its famous mark ‘Coco’. The Vietnamese retailer had filed for the mark ‘CocoGoodsCo’ under class 3, which mainly covers soaps, shampoo, deodorant and perfume, and the same was opposed by the French luxury brand. The UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO), while upholding the opposition, has stated that out of the three components of the mark CocoGoodsCo, Coco is the dominant and distinctive one, which may confuse the consumers into believing that the Vietnamese brand is related to Chanel. However, in a partial win for Luong Quoi Coconut, the UKIPO has allowed the mark for ‘essential oil for hair used as cosmetics’ as Chanel’s trademark does not cover the above goods.
IP Innovation Gallery
In a bid to create IP awareness, Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Intellectual Property Management (RGNIIPM) has launched an IP Innovation Gallery in Nagpur. The objective of the gallery is to create IP awareness by displaying innovations, patent models or any award winning prototypes. The gallery will be open for participants to display their work for a minimum period of six months. The proposals for the work can be submitted from 15th to 25th April 2019. The participants selected for displaying their work will also be provided with certificates from RGNIIPM.
BRAND LICENSING UPDATES
Endangered Species Footwear Collection
National Geographic, a flagship channel owned by the Walt Disney Company and National Geographic Society, has collaborated with world’s leading footwear brand Clarks, to launch kids’ footwear collection titled “Clarks Kids X National Geographic”. The designs are inspired by endangered species including the African Leopard, the Poison Dart Frog, the Panther Chameleon, to name a few. Abiding by National Geographic’s focus on sustainability, the collection will be made from 100% recycled bottles, using recycled cardboard and natural vegetable dyes for the packaging. The collection features casual shoes, canvas shoes, boots, and school shoes for kids.
GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION UPDATES
Five Varieties of Indian Coffee Gets GI
Geographical Indications Registry of the Government of India recently issued GI tags to five varieties of Indian coffee which includes Coorg Arabica coffee grown in the Kodagu district of Karnataka, Wayanad Robusta coffee from the Wayanad district in Kerala, Chikmagalur Arabica coffee hailing from the Chikmagalur district in Karnataka, Araku Valley Arabica coffee from the Visakhapatnam district in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, and Bababudangiris Arabica coffee from central the portion of the Chikmagalur district. Indian coffee is said to be highly valued in the international market. The applications were filed in January 2018 by the Coffee Board of India.
Author: BIP Trademark Attorneys
Led by Sanjeeth Hegde, BIP’s Trademark Attorneys are among the leading experts in the field. They work on trademark filing, prosecution, management, licensing, franchising, merchandizing, litigation, and strategy for clients such as PEPS, Yash Raj Films, Dharma Productions, Essilor, Samsung and the IITs.
The weekly trademark news initiative is a part of their pro bono work and is aimed at spreading trademark awareness. You are free to share the news with appropriate attribution and backlink to the source.
If you have any questions, you may write to BIP’s Trademark Attorneys at contact@bananaip.com
