KIPO to Discuss Response with Affected Firms
The Korean Intellectual Property Office announced on Oct. 28 that it detected 1,140 suspicious cases of illegal trademark preoccupation in 62 countries with regard to South Korean companies’ 279 trademarks.
The cases include 594 in eight ASEAN member countries and 189 in 22 European countries. The former include 204 in Indonesia, 116 in Thailand and 83 in Singapore.
By industry, electrical and electronics accounted for 31.7 percent of the total, followed by cosmetics (10.6 percent), food (9 percent), franchise (8.8 percent) and garment (7.2 percent). By individual trademark, cosmetics and confectionery trademarks accounted for the biggest part.
The office is going to provide the data for affected South Korean companies and hold a meeting next month to discuss how to respond and gather their opinions. The office referred to the Global Brand Database of the World Intellectual Property Organization and the TMview of the European Union Intellectual Property Office for the analysis.