Enterprises license others to use registered trademarks, usually by concluding a license contract, that is, issuing licenses. In the licensing relationship, the trademark owner or the person authorized to use the trademark is the licensor and the other party is the licensee. ?
In fact, some trademark licensing contracts are independent licensing agreements, and quite a few of them are trademark licensing clauses contained in other contracts, such as those attached to technology transfer and franchise contracts. When signing a trademark use agreement, the enterprise may consider choosing one of the following three types:
1, general license:
"Small profits but quick turnover" form.
That is, the licensor allows the licensee to use the registered trademark under the contract within the specified geographical scope. At the same time, Licensor reserves the right to use the registered trademark in this area and grants the right to use the registered trademark to a third party.
This licensing method is mostly applicable to the situation that the licensee has limited production capacity or the product market demand is large. Licensor can choose more licensees, and the price of each license is relatively low, which is a way of "small profits but quick turnover".
For the licensee, the right to use the trademark is non-exclusive. Therefore, if the registered trademark involved in the contract is used by a third party without authorization, the licensee shall not sue the infringer in its own name, but only inform the licensor of the relevant information, and the licensor shall take necessary measures against the infringement.
2. Exclusive license:
Can resist the exclusive use of trademark owners.
That is, within the specified geographical scope, the licensee enjoys the exclusive right to use the registered trademark authorized. Licensor shall not license the same trademark to a third party, nor shall licensor use the trademark in the territory. The royalty of exclusive license is much higher than other licenses, so only when the licensee considers the market effect of product competition and thinks it is really necessary to use the trademark exclusively in a certain area will he ask for such license.
The legal status of the licensee is equivalent to the "quasi-trademark owner". When trademark infringement is found in the designated area, the licensee may directly sue the infringer as an "interested party".
3. Exclusive license:
Parallel use of trademark owners and licensees.
In this case, in addition to the licensor giving the licensee the right to use its registered trademark, the licensee can also enjoy the right to exclude the use of the third party. That is, the licensor may not license the same to any third party, but the licensor reserves the right to use the same registered trademark. The exclusive license only excludes third parties from using the trademark in this area.
According to Article 43 of the Trademark Law of People's Republic of China (PRC)?
1. A trademark registrant may authorize others to use its registered trademark by signing a trademark license contract. The licensor shall supervise the quality of the goods in which the licensee uses its registered trademark. The licensee shall guarantee the quality of the goods using the registered trademark.
2. Anyone who uses another person's registered trademark with permission must indicate the name of the licensee and the place of origin of the commodity on which the registered trademark is used.
3. Where another person is licensed to use its registered trademark, the licensor shall report the trademark license to the Trademark Office for the record, and the Trademark Office shall make an announcement. Without filing, the trademark license shall not be used against bona fide third parties.
Extended data:
Problems needing attention
1, firmly grasp the quality control of goods.
The property value of a trademark lies in its reputation. Licensing others to use the trademark means that the reputation of the trademark is attached to the behavior of the licensee and the goods it provides. Therefore, the quality control in the licensing contract is an extremely important content. There are many noteworthy lessons in this regard, such as:
Qingdao soda plant was once one of the eight major carbonated beverage production bases in China, and the products represented by "Laoshan Coke" were very popular in the market. However, the factory was eager for quick success and instant benefit, and rashly licensed 144 domestic enterprises to use the "Laoshan" trademark. Due to the lack of necessary quality assurance measures, the quality of goods has dropped sharply, which directly affects the reputation of trademarks.
Later, although the person in charge of the factory changed many times, the factory's abuse of license has been lacking effective control, which led to the decline of its trademark reputation and seriously affected the survival of enterprises. Taking 1998 as an example, the product sales of Qingdao Laoshan Mineral Water Co., Ltd. in Qingdao are100000 RMB, while the sales of Wahaha purified water in Qingdao are 40 million RMB.
2. Choose partners carefully.
Commodity quality control For licensors, first of all, we should carefully choose partners and let those enterprises with good production capacity, high management level and strong performance ability be licensees. Before granting the license, Licensor shall inspect and test the legal person qualification, production capacity, management level and product quality of Licensee.
Those who can't meet the same quality standards as their own products can't sell their licenses. After the licensing contract is concluded, the licensor should pay close attention to the production and sales of the licensee to prevent the licensee from any phenomenon that damages the trademark reputation in terms of product quality and after-sales service.
During the term of the contract, Licensor has the responsibility to supervise the production process, technical production, product inspection and management of Licensee. When the licensee's products can't meet the quality of the licensed registered trademark, the licensor shall take decisive measures to prevent the situation from developing further, and if necessary, it shall explicitly terminate the contract and withdraw the trademark license right.
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Baidu Encyclopedia-People's Republic of China (PRC) Trademark Law