Distribution companies in Vietnam can post sign a foreign trademark?

Can a distribution company in Vietnam register a foreign trademark?

Pursuant to the provisions of Article 89 of the Intellectual Property Law 2005, which regulates how to apply for registration to establish public ownership rights. career as follows:

1. Vietnamese organizations and individuals, foreign individuals permanently residing in Vietnam, foreign organizations and individuals with production and business establishments in Vietnam apply to establish industrial property rights directly or through a legal representative in Vietnam.

2. Foreign individuals who do not permanently reside in Vietnam, foreign organizations and individuals who do not have production or business establishments in Vietnam submit an application to establish industrial property rights through a legal representative in Vietnam.”

Accordingly, foreign trademarks can be registered in Vietnam, however, Vietnamese companies can only register as legal representatives of foreign companies and cannot use their own capacity to register that trademark. That means there must be a written authorization from the foreign company that owns the trademark to register this trademark.

How to register a trademark?

Pursuant to Article 87 of the 2005 Intellectual Property Law (amended by Clause 13, Article 1 of the 2009 Amended Intellectual Property Law), regulations on trademark registration rights are as follows:

“1. Organizations and individuals have the right to register trademarks for the goods they produce or the services they provide.

2. Organizations and individuals conducting legal commercial activities have the right to register trademarks for products they put on the market but are manufactured by others, provided that the manufacturer does not use that trademark for the product and does not object to such registration.

3. A legally established collective organization has the right to register a collective mark for use by its members according to the regulations on use of collective marks; For signs indicating the geographical origin of goods or services, the organization has the right to register as a collective organization of organizations and individuals conducting production and business in that locality; For place names and other signs indicating the geographical origin of local Vietnamese specialties, registration must be permitted by a competent state authority.

4. Organizations with the function of controlling and certifying quality, characteristics, origin or other criteria related to goods and services have the right to register certification marks with the condition that they do not produce or trade those goods or services; For place names and other signs indicating the geographical origin of local Vietnamese specialties, registration must be permitted by a competent state authority.

5. Two or more organizations and individuals have the right to jointly register a trademark to become co-owners with the following conditions:

a) Use of that trademark must be on behalf of all co-owners or used for goods and services in which all co-owners participate in the production and business process;

b) Use of that trademark must not cause confusion for consumers about the origin of goods and services.

6. Persons with registration rights specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of this Article, including those who have submitted registration applications, have the right to transfer registration rights to other organizations and individuals in the form of written contracts, for inheritance or inheritance in accordance with the provisions of law, provided that the transferred organizations and individuals must meet the conditions for the person with the corresponding registration rights.

7. For a trademark protected in a country that is a member of an international treaty that prohibits the representative or agent of the trademark owner from registering that trademark and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is also a member, that representative or agent is not allowed to register the trademark without the consent of the trademark owner, unless there is a justifiable reason.”

Right to register inventions, industrial designs, layout designs How?

Pursuant to Article 86 of the Intellectual Property Law 2005 as follows:

“1. The following organizations and individuals have the right to register inventions, industrial designs, and layout designs:

a) The author creates inventions, industrial designs, and layout designs with his or her own effort and expense;

b) Organizations and individuals invest funds and material means for the author in the form of job assignment or hiring, unless the parties have otherwise agreed and that agreement is not contrary to the provisions of Clause 2, Article this.

2. The Government regulates the right to register inventions, industrial designs, and layout designs created by using physical and technical facilities and funds from the state budget.

3. In case many organizations and individuals jointly create or invest in creating an invention, industrial design, or layout design, those organizations and individuals have the right to register and that registration right can only be exercised if all of those organizations and individuals agree.

4. Persons with registration rights specified in this Article have the right to transfer registration rights to other organizations or individuals in the form of written contracts, for inheritance or inheritance in accordance with the provisions of law, even in cases where registration applications have been submitted.