08.05.2008
Registration of Japanese Regional Brands in China
Apparently, the conflict around the planned registration of the trademark AOMORI in China was not an isolated case: According to information gained by the Peking office of JETRO (Japan External Trade Organization), several Chinese and Taiwanese companies have submitted applications to register Japanese regional brand names as trademarks such as the famous Matsusaka-ushi beef and Naruto Kintoki sweet potatos.
An official of the Beijing JETRO office recommended that owners of Japanese regional brands should consider further steps to protect their brands in China.
Recently, the prefectural government of Kagoshima filed a complaint against a Chinese firm that had registered the name Kagoshima as its trademark in China.
According to the Beijing JETRO official, as of the end of the year 2007, Chinese or Taiwanese firms had registered 36 of Japan’s 47 prefectural names as trademarks, with the name Kyoto being the most popular name (93 registrations).
Keywords for this post:
China, Japan, Marken, trademarks
