Trademark filings continue to grow in Russia

Did you know that the number of trademark applications again increased in Russia in 2019? There were over 10 000 more national trademark filings and 1 400 more international trademark filings than in 2018.

1.     All trademark applications

All trademark applications in Russia in 2019:

• 68 705 national trademark applications
• 18 804 international trademark applications filed through the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and designating Russia
• 10 512 rejection decisions

 2. National new trademark applications

About 15% of national applications were filed by foreigners. See below the top foreign filers:

These statistics show that in spite of international sanctions placed against Russia, Russia is still an attractive country in terms of intellectual property rights protection. Further, the numbers demonstrate that national filings are still a more popular way to protect trademarks.

“The reason for companies to file more national trademark applications is twofold: Russian applicants file national applications because trademarks are mostly used and protected in Russian Cyrillic characters which are used in Russia”, explains Papula-Nevinpat’s Riikka Palmos, Trademark Lawyer.

“In addition, foreign companies file national applications to cover the Cyrillic version of their trademarks in Russia because protecting a trademark in Cyrillic as an international trademark in Russia is not reasonable, as there are different Cyrillic characters used in different CIS countries”, adds Riikka.

3. Refusal of a trademark application

Sometimes the Russian Patent Office, Rospatent, refuses a trademark application. The examiner’s refusal can be first appealed to the Patent Disputes Chamber (PDC) of Rospatent. The decision of the PDC can be further appealed to the IP Court.

The following numbers show that the Court tends to follow Rospatent’s decisions. This demonstrates that appeals filed with the IP Court must be well prepared and grounded in order to be successful.

Do you need help in protecting your brand also in Russia? We at Papula-Nevinpat would be happy to assist you in all trademark matters in Russia and the Eurasia region.