Protection of Unregistered Trade Marks in Hong Kong – What brand owners need to know
Successfully opposing a trade mark application on the basis of pre-existing unregistered trade mark rights is notoriously difficult in Hong Kong, but the VIVO case* shows how it can be done.
We were able to help our client, Garmin Switzerland GMBH (“Garmin”), establish both goodwill and reputation in Garmin’s family of VIVO-formative marks, and the Trade Marks Registry found that use of the VIVO mark will likely cause confusion.
Background
BBK Electronics (“BBK”), a Chinese company known in China for its VIVO branded smartphones and portable electronic devices, applied to register the VIVO mark in Class 9 in Hong Kong.
Garmin, a leading company specializing in GPS technology and promoting its products under various brand names beginning with VIVO e.g. VIVOFIT, VIVOSMART, VIVOACTIVE and VIVOMOVE, opposed the application on the grounds of passing-off, that its marks are well-known and bad faith.
The law
In particular, section 12 (5) (a) of the Hong Kong Trade Marks Ordinance protects an unregistered mark under the law of passing off. To establish the ground of passing off, we had to show three key elements:
(i) Goodwill and reputation
Garmin was able to establish that it had been using its various VIVO and VIVO-formative marks on smart watches, wrist bands and activity trackers in Hong Kong since 2014, almost two years earlier than the application date of the disputed mark. Based on the evidence filed, the Hearing Officer was satisfied that Garmin had established goodwill and reputation in its various VIVO and VIVO-formative marks.
(ii) Misrepresentation
Given the high degree of similarity, both visual and aural, between the parties’ marks and products, and BKK’s products are complimentary with Garmin’s and sold through the same channels, misrepresentation was also established. BKK’s use of the disputed mark in mainland China was held to be irrelevant.
(iii) Damage
As a result of the above two findings, it was found that there was a likelihood of damage suffered by Garmin.
Key takeaways
A successful opposition based on unregistered trade mark rights require strong evidence to establish goodwill in the mark before the date of the application of the disputed mark.
Therefore, brand owners should ensure they have procedures in place to collect and maintain records of use of their marks. These include: dates and records of product packaging; sales invoices listing the branded products; relevant catalogues or brochures; advertisements with dates and publication details; printouts of websites with dates showing sales or promotions. In addition, the evidence being collected should be specific to Hong Kong and, if possible, show continuous and extensive sales and promotion of the branded products/services.
*Case: Opposition against App. No. 303797579 for [2023] HKTMR 40
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Please reach out to us for advice about your specific circumstances.
For further information, please contact:
Theresa Mak, Rouse
tmak@rouse.com
