The global recession has had a negative impact on international trademark filing under the Madrid system, a press release from the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) reports. International trademark filing for 2009 was down 16% on the previous year. International trademark registration was also down, by 12% on the previous year.
This is to be expected in a downturn. Trademark registration is of course linked to business activity. For example, parties would generally look to acquire exclusive rights to use a brand name when launching a new business, expanding into a new product line or entering a new market. All of these activities are naturally going to be affected when companies internationally are facing difficulties with finance and a reduction in consumer demand. As the WIPO Director General noted however:
“Trademarks and the brands they underpin play a key role in value creation and provide the basis for business expansion when the economy recovers.”
This suggests that there is still a strong business case for filing for international trademark registration, particularly in light of the green shoots that are beginning to appear across many key economic sectors.
Filing for trademark registration will allow a business enjoy the exclusive right to use its brand name in a particular market. International trademark registration can confer this protection in up to 84 countries. The exclusive right to use a particular brand provides a focus point for marketing efforts and a way for consumers to remember the quality of a business’ goods or services. In other words, the goodwill in a business (a favourable reputation in the eyes of the public), that is its just reward for outperforming its competitors, attaches to the trademark. For this reason, after the appropriate investment in terms of time and effort has been made, an international trademark registration can become a business’ most valuable asset. This makes it worth considering in good economic times as well as the bad.
There were some notable exceptions to the overall reduction in international trademark filing, chief amongst which was the European Union. International trademark filing designating the EU as the home state was up 3.1% on the previous year. In total, EU designated international trademark filings accounted for 21, 824 of all received by WIPO.
For those readers interested in facts and figures, the press release also provides some interesting trivia about trademark registration. For example, the first international trademark registration was granted in 1893 to a Swiss chocolate producer, but it is no longer in effect. The oldest international trademark registration that is still in effect was also granted in 1893 and this belongs to Longines, the Swiss watchmaker.
The most international trademark filings in 2009 were made by Novartis, Switzerland (international trademark filing count: 136). At the end of 2009, the most international trademark registrations held by a single party belonged to Henkel, Germany (international trademark registration count: 2, 815).
To read the full press release, click here.