New Regulations of Intellectual Property Law in 2022

Intellectual property is currently playing a very important role in Vietnam and other countries around the world. With the participation in Trade Agreements and market expansion, the regulations on intellectual property have had many positive changes towards the protection and promotion of intellectual property rights and in line with the general trend of countries.

 

Intellectual property rights in Vietnam

Intellectual property rights are the rights of organizations or individuals to trademarks, inventions, designs or other forms of creation. Currently, intellectual property rights are recognized as an asset class, which can constitute corporate assets. Popular groups of intellectual property today include: (i) Copyright; (ii) Inventions; (iii) Industrial design; (iv) Trademarks. These are objects created by thinking, mental labor, cognitive activities of people and protected by law.

Currently, intellectual property rights are governed by the 2005 Intellectual Property Law, which was amended and supplemented in 2009, and 2019. These are efforts in changing Vietnam’s legal system in raise awareness and perfect the legal system on intellectual property of Vietnam. Up to now, the Intellectual Property Law has created a legal corridor for organizations and individuals to establish and protect intellectual property rights, contributing to encouraging creative activities, and enhancing the value of intellectual property, wisdom. However, after 17 years since its promulgation, the Law on Intellectual Property has also arisen problems, inadequacies and incompatibility to ensure the implementation of commitments on intellectual property in trade agreements to which Vietnam is a member.

To implement the above guidelines and policies, the National Office of Intellectual has coordinated with relevant agencies to change and supplement regulations on intellectual property accordingly. Accordingly, the content of amendments to the Intellectual Property Law focuses on importnt groups of policies with about 100 amended and supplemented articles. Therefore, obstacles and inadequacies such as regulations on licensing of patents, industrial designs, layout designs and plant varieties are the result of scientific and technological tasks using the state budget; regulations relating to procedures for registration and establishment of intellectual property rights and validity of protection titles; regulations on security control for inventions before registration abroad; on compensation to patent owners for delays in marketing authorization of pharmaceutical products; on sound trademark protection; on geographical indication management; on liability for copyright and related rights for enterprises providing intermediary services.

In addition to the Draft of Intellectual Property Law, the Draft Circular is also proposed to stipulate economic – technical norms for a number of public services funded by the state budget, including training and retraining services on Intellectual Property, the service of confirming the validity of international registration of trademarks protected in Vietnam.

Moreover, the National Office of Intellectual also implemented the reform and modernization of the information technology system, reducing the burden of administrative procedures, internal processes to handle administrative procedures; actively review and evaluate administrative procedures and develop a plan for decentralization and simplification of administrative procedures in the field of intellectual property; organize the collection of fees and charges via commercial bank accounts and issue receipts of electronic fees and charges. In addition, the information synchronization for the Government’s National Public Service Portal is also interested in development.

The new Draft Law on Intellectual Property has many additions and adjustments in accordance with practical requirements and is expected to take effect, which will help solve problems that still exist. However, in order to ensure that the enforcement of intellectual property rights is effective and meets the set requirements, businesses need to pay attention and comply well with legal regulations.

If the client needs any other information or requires for further advice, our IP attorney in Vietnam at ANT Lawyers, the IP agent in Vietnam will be available for service.

 

 

 

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What are intellectual property rights? How do they affect society?

Intellectual Property is creation of minds. It is a set of Intangibles owned and legally protected by the creator of the innovative Ideas. To promote the Innovations, creativity and its protection, numerous laws are enacted by Government to let the creators secure exclusivity and ownership rights by registering their innovations and unique ideas. Upon obtaining registration, the creator or owner enjoy exclusive right to use, sell, assign their rights, and avail monetary benefit through it, and also to protect the same.

Protecting Intellectual Property Rights in Vietnam

The most used IPR are:

-Trademarks

-Patents

-Copyright

-Geographical Indication

-Industrial Designs namely

All these above mentioned benefits motivates the creation of new ideas and innovations for the betterment of the society as the new ideas leads to competition in market which helps to improve the quality of goods and services. It also allows the owner of IP to quantify their creation in monetary terms and convert their ideas into business, which also leads to employment generation in the society.

Source: Quora

If you are looking for an experienced IP attorneys in Vietnam to help you with your IP application, you should visit ANT Lawyers.vn. Our attorneys have experience with the IP process and will work closely with you as you apply for your IP. Contact ANT Lawyers experts at ant@antlawyers.vn or call our office at +84 28 730 86 529. Hope this helps!

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What are the benefits that a society gets from intellectual property rights (IPR)?

In theory, intellectual property encourages innovation by rewarding scientists, inventors, artists, scholars, and other creators with exclusive rights to their ideas and expressions. This in turn results in greater artistic, scientific, and technological achievement, which in turn advances the economy and quality of life, and progress of humanity as a whole.   

IP Enforcement in Vietnam

It also satisfies a deeply held sense of ownership, that if you discover or make something it’s yours. This may be cultural rather than innate – not every society believes this about the fruits of creativity.

Whether an IP regime serves these goals depends a lot on the legal regime put in place around it, and how that plays in a given cultural and economic context. To establish something as property involves creating a bundle of rights such as a right to alienate it by selling, trading, or licensing, a right to exclusivity, the ability to create and enforce contracts about it, and a right to enforce ownership through legal means. A lot of fine tuning is involved, which could result in an effective IP system, or alternately, one that enforces privilege and disparity of wealth by denying basic things like life-saving drugs, software tools, or popular songs to those without ability to pay, that concentrates wealth by adding IP assignment terms to every employment or contractor relationship, or that suppresses innovation by denying creators access to what other creators have done. Even so, an unfair IP regime may (or may not) create wealth for a society.

Source: Quora

If you are looking for an experienced IP attorney in Vietnam to help you with your patent application, you should visit ANT Lawyers.vn. Our attorneys have experience with the IP process and will work closely with you as you apply for your patent. We routinely match inventors with experienced IP attorneys for a free consultation on our platform and offer a money back guarantee.

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What is copyright infringement?

The U.S. Copyright Office provides this definition of copyright infringement:

As a general matter, copyright infringement occurs when a copyrighted work is reproduced, distributed, performed, publicly displayed, or made into a derivative work without the permission of the copyright owner.

Copyright Law firm in Vietnam

A copyrighted work is a literary, musical or artistic work that is fixed in a tangible medium (paper, canvas, computer file, audio or video recording, etc.). Such protection lasts for a limited period of time (in the United States, that period for works created after January 1, 1978, is the life of the author plus an additional 70 years). Protected works include poetry, novels, movies, songs, computer software, and architecture.

Copyright does not protect names, titles, slogans, short phrases, ideas, concepts, systems, or methods of doing something; however, these things may be protected as trademarks or patents.

ANT Lawyers - A Law firm in Vietnam is supported by a team of experienced patent, trademark, design attorneys with qualification and skills handling full range of legal services relating to intellectual property rights in Vietnam.  We have specialized in the preparation and registration of patents, trademarks and designs for our clients.

Source: Quora

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When should a startup file for a trademark?

You should register your mark when your product already gives profit. So, when the expenses are lower than income, you should start protecting your name from the competitors.

Trademark Law Firm in Vietnam

While there exist a possibility that somebody would register the same mark for the same product, it is highly unlikely. Because:

The chances that some other person in the same country decides to register the same brand name, having no knowledge about your business, is close to 0;

If somebody else, knowing about your brand, registers it wishing to sell you the mark or illegally disrupt your business, you can sue them in court (on the grounds of bad faith).

I have seen cases, when people just at the beginning of their business invested high money in the intellectual property matters, but unfortunately, the business later failed. I believe, at the beginning there are always better fields to invest money.

You already have some-kind of protection:

While you must have knowledge about existing intellectual property rights (not to be sued yourself), protecting your own trademark can go to the second plan. Furthermore, even if trademarks are not protected without registration, there are still some legal grounds that protects you. For example:

A person who has used legally the mark before someone else registered it (legally, of cause), cannot be prevented to continue using the mark for the same scope (same goods and same territory);

If your trademark is not a generic term but an inventive word or a specific graphical image, it will be protected by the copyright law. And the copyright law does not need any registration, it is gained automatically once an original work is created. If you are a pharma company, do it, before you tell the name loud:

But, the need to register or not a trademark also depends a lot on the field where your business operates. For example, drugs industry is especially sensitive for all IP matters (patents, trademarks…). So, in this field I advice to register a mark as soon as possible. Because in the pharmaceuticals industry, the competition is really tough and it is better to have all IP protection you can.

Additional advices:

-Check for prior trademarks;

-Do not use any mark that is similar to the well-known brands (so NO “Aple”; “Cola-coca”, etc.);

-Better use a distinctive word, phrase, logo - you have stronger IP protection.

ANT Lawyers - A Law firm in Vietnam is supported by a team of experienced patent, trademark, design attorneys with qualification and skills handling full range of legal services relating to intellectual property rights in Vietnam.  We have specialized in the preparation and registration of patents, trademarks and designs for our clients.

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What is Intellectual Property Law?

Our legal system provides certain rights and protections for owners of property. The kind of property that results from the fruits of mental labor is called intellectual property. Rights and protections for owners of intellectual property are based on federal patent, trademark and copyright laws and state trade secret laws.

Protecting Intellectual Property Rights in Vietnam

In general:

-Patents protect inventions of tangible things.

-Copyrights protect various forms of written and artistic expression.

-Trademarks protect a name or symbol that identifies the source of goods or services.

It is important to note that patents, trademarks, and copyrights constitute the basis on which the underlying intellectual property may be protected in law. It is therefore vital that a great degree of skill be exercised in drafting the documents and following the procedures necessary for obtaining this protection.

By relying on a specialist in the field who has good standing and recognized ability in his profession, the inventor or artist can be assured that the intellectual property will be adequately protected.

ANT Lawyers - A Law firm in Vietnam is supported by a team of experienced patent, trademark, design attorneys with qualification and skills handling full range of legal services relating to intellectual property rights in Vietnam.  We have specialized in the preparation and registration of patents, trademarks and designs for our clients.

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What is the complete procedure to apply for a trademark opposition?

As from the date an application for registration of mark is published in the Official Gazette of Industrial Property up until prior to the date of issuance of a decision on grant of a protection title, the third party shall express the opposition to the competent State administrative body including explanations, argument and evidence the opinion. Such opinions must be made in writing and be accompanied by documents or must quote the source of information.

Opposition to trademark applications plays a great role for the protection of trademark owner that prevents counterfeiting, duplication, infringement and trademark registration in contravention of law

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Trademark Opposition in Vietnam

You can file a Trademark opposition against any Trademark application published in the Trademark Journal during the 3 months period when it is kept open for opposition from the general public.

You can file a Trademark opposition on your own if you have the knowledge of applicable laws, know under what provisions the Trademark needs to be opposed, can draft the opposition petition on your own and know what legal documents are required for the same.

Coming to the procedure of filing a Trademark opposition, a trademark opposition is filed by a third party to prevent the proprietor from getting the Trademark registered if it is similar to his/her own or is identical to the one already used by the party.

A person may file an opposition to a Trademark to prevent the brand from illicitly gaining from his/her established brand name and avoid confusion among the consumers.

A trademark opposition is filed in the form of a Notice of Opposition that lays down the grounds on which the application is challenged. It is attached with the evidence that proves why the Trademark application flouts any legal norms or violates an existing Trademark.

Documents Required To File A Trademark Opposition

The copy of Trademark to be opposed.

The reason for opposition.

The Notice of Opposition i.e. the application opposing the mark published in the journal is drafted (it is suggested that you hire a lawyer for the same to avoid any omissions or errors). The Notice of Opposition is sent to the Registrar first, who will examine it and then send it to the applicant.

The Trademark applicant gets 2 months(1+1) to file a counter-statement against the opposition received.

ANT Lawyers -  A Law firm in Vietnam is supported by a team of experienced patent, trademark, design attorneys with qualification and skills handling full range of legal services relating to intellectual property rights in Vietnam.  We have specialized in the preparation and registration of patents, trademarks and designs for our clients.

We assist our clients in all steps of the prosecution phase of IP management.

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What Can Be Trademarked?

A phrase, word, symbol, device, or even a color are all eligible for a trademark. Anything that distinguishes the goods of your party or company from another qualifies. However, the item must be used in a commercial setting to obtain protection from the law. Trademarks have a 10-year protection span.

Trademark in Vietnam 

Trademark are important to:

Distinguish your company from others

-Indicate the source of goods

-Distinguish your service from others

-Give permission to other companies for cobranding

-Indicate a membership in a union

-A trademarkable symbol also lets customers know who you are. This is especially important when two companies in the same industry have a similar name, for example.

The three types of trademarks include:

Trademarks and Service Marks: These phrases, words, or symbols define a company's goods or services. However, a service mark indicates a service, while a trademark indicates a good.

Collective Marks: These are just like trademarks, except they identify a greater group. With collective marks, members of a group can profit from a single trademark.

Certification Marks: These marks cover characteristics of a product. For example, if something is 100 percent cotton, it could fall under a certification mark.

It's important to note that just because you have a trademark doesn't mean you own a monopoly regarding your symbol, logo, or name. You only control the interest over that name or logo and the association between your goods or services. For example, McDonald's may have a slogan that says "I'm Lovin' it," but if you were to use it in an industry outside of food service, they wouldn't attack you for trademark infringement.

The hardest trademarks to register include:

-Descriptive names that can't be distinguished from those of other products

-Names that include a geographic location, such as California Pizza Kitchen

-Generic names

-Deceptive names

-Surnames pertaining to a product

However, remember that there may be exceptions to the rule

ANT Lawyers -  A Law firm in Vietnam is supported by a team of experienced patent, trademark, design attorneys with qualification and skills handling full range of legal services relating to intellectual property rights in Vietnam.  We have specialized in the preparation and registration of patents, trademarks and designs for our clients.

We assist our clients in all steps of the prosecution phase of IP management.

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What kinds of things can you trademark?

There are many things that you can use to represent your goods or services. These marks of your trade: “Trademarks” can either be conventional or unconventional.

Trademark opposition in Vietnam 

1.Conventional trademarks: Convention means generic means common means general. Following are the conventional trademarks:

a.A word

When a word is used as a trademark, it is called a Wordmark. For example, coca cola is a word mark. Any kind of word can be trademarked. However, the following words cannot be:

-Descriptive names

-Deceptive names

-Generic names

-Offensive names

b.A logo

A special design word or an image can be a logo. For example, while coca cola is a work mark registered as a trademark, Coca Cola, on the other hand, is a logo.

c.A symbol

Have you ever seen the symbol of Pepsi- a circle divided into by a twice curved line in between, with the upper half red and the lower half blue in colour? It is a symbol, and yes, it is trademarked.

d.Colour combination

You can also trademark a specific colour combination if you want.

e.A device can be trademarked

 Logos or symbols are basically devices that you can trademark.

2.Unconventional trademarks

Unconventional means uncommon means not generic. They are trademarks that are not common and were only recently introduced.

a.Sound pattern:

A specific pattern of sound can be trademarked. Windows theme, the one that is so familiar to you, is a trademarked theme.

b.Smell:

A specific smell can be trademarked as well. Most of the perfumes are trademarked.

ANT Lawyers -  A Law firm in Vietnam is supported by a team of experienced patent, trademark, design attorneys with qualification and skills handling full range of legal services relating to intellectual property rights in Vietnam.  We have specialized in the preparation and registration of patents, trademarks and designs for our clients.

We assist our clients in all steps of the prosecution phase of IP management.

Source: Quora

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