-
 When
Trung Nguyen Coffee (TN) first filed its trademark registration
application in the United States, we learned that a US-based
company had already filed an application for this trademark and
was awaiting approval. We were determined to reclaim our
trademark and hired a lawyer to help us, and simultaneously
began to look into why that company filed to register our trade
name. We found out that the company is a distributor of
agricultural products who was aware that "Trung Nguyen" is a
well-known Vietnamese trademark and therefore filed to register
the Trung Nguyen trademark in order to secure sole-distributor
status of "Trung Nguyen" products in the US. After lengthy
negotiations, this company agreed to withdraw its application
with the condition that that it be given sole-distribution
rights of our coffee in the US for 2 years.
Not only was our trademark stolen, but the web domain of "trungnguyen.com"
was also registered by an overseas Vietnamese in the Czech
Republic who is now offering to sell it at an extremely high
price. The lesson that Trung Nguyen has learned and now wants to
share with other businesses is that lack of understanding of
trademark issues can cost you dearly. Business with well-known
trade names domestically still need to start from scratch in
international markets. More than anyone else, each business
should fully understand the value of its own trademark; external
consultants can only help express an idea and take care of
printing, making signs, etc…but it is the company that lives and
works with its trademark.
Vo Thi Ha Giang,
Public Relations and Advertising Officer, Trung Nguyen Coffee
Co. Ltd.
-
 Although
businesses now have better understanding of trademarks, they are
currently faced with the problem of not knowing where to start
in terms of developing their trademark. Even after attending
training courses in trademark development, managers still don't
know what to do, where to start, because what they have learned
is theoretical.
Looking at the supply-side of services, it is very hard to find
a consulting firm with strong expertise in marketing and
branding. Many businesses do it themselves rather than hire
consultants because they have used consultants in the past and
were disappointed with the results. A number of businesses have
asked me to help them identify foreign consulting firms. Foreign
firms have better technical knowledge and expertise, but
Vietnamese firms are much better at understanding local culture
and mindset, which is very important for success in trademark
development. Domestic consulting firms need to focus on
developing a specialization in trademark development services to
meet this increasing demand.
Mr. Vu Quoc Chinh,
Marketing Lecturer,
Department of Commerce, Tourism and Marketing, Ho Chi Minh City
Economic University
-
If the general
public had a better understanding of trademark issues, trademark
protection would be more effective. Better awareness would help
reduce violations and create social pressure against fake and
imitation goods. It may be worthwhile to consider adding IP into
university curricula, particularly for students studying
technology and law. When I was studying in Russia 20 years ago,
IP was an official subject taught in Russian universities.
In terms of understanding of the issue by Vietnamese businesses,
many complain that the legal framework does not protect their
trademark and trade names in all business lines. For example,
Thien Long ballpoint pen company has requested that no other
company, regardless of business line, be allowed to "Thien Long"
as a trade name. This is an unreasonable request, and is due to
the company's lack of knowledge. According to the international
treaties that Vietnam has acceded to, trademarks are only
protected by product and/or service line (34 product lines and
11 service lines). So in the case of Thien Long ballpoint pen
company, its trademark is only protected in the stationery
product line. Companies in other product and service lines are
legally allowed to use "Thien Long" as their company trade name.
Mr. Tran Viet Hung,
Deputy Director General,
National Office of Intellectual Property of Viet Nam
-
A trademark is an
asset. In other countries, companies with well-known trademarks
list the value of their trademark as an "intangible asset" on
their balance sheet. Most Vietnamese businesses do not yet
perceive their trademarks as an asset and therefore do not
invest in its development. They are willing to invest large sums
of money into new equipment or technology are reluctant to pay
for developing a trademark. Many businesses feel that paying a
consultant $1,000-$2,000 USD to develop a name brand is too
high, yet they are willing to invest thousands of dollars to
import a packaging production line, for example, only to find
that their design has already been registered when they go to
register the trade name and design.
Mr. Ho Vinh Thinh,
Partner, Ageless IP Attorneys & Consultants
-
From the time a
business develops its strategy, through the processes of product
concept, design and test production to full commercial
production normally takes at least 12 months. In that time,
businesses should already be thinking about registering their
trademark and coming up with a strategy to develop the trademark
for the product they plan to launch. Trademark imitation or
theft only happens when a company's product has achieved a good
reputation and position in the market. If the business had
prepared well in advance, it would have a solid legal position
from which to protect itself once its product is in the market.
Mr. Pham Vu Khanh
Toan, Attorney-at-Law, Pham & Associates
>> More...
|
