Newsletter
Famous Trademarks Have Different Protection Scopes According to Their Degree of Fame
Article 30 of the Trademark Act stipulates that a trademark shall not be registered if it is identical with or similar to another person’s famous trademark, and hence there exists a likelihood of confusion on the relevant public or a likelihood of dilution of the distinctiveness or reputation of such a famous trademark.
The Supreme Administrative Court stated in a trademark invalidation case in 2021 that famous trademarks should have different protection scopes in Article 30 of the Trademark Act according to their degree of fame. The Court pointed out that the former provision of a likelihood of confusion on the relevant public should be interpreted as a trademark that is famous only among the relevant consumers, while the latter provision of a likelihood of dilution of the distinctiveness or reputation of such a famous trademark should be interpreted as not only limited to the relevant consumers, but must be the trademarks that are commonly known to general consumers.