Standardizing the management of special signs and promoting the unified recognition of geographical indications

Recently, the State Intellectual Property Office issued the measures for the administration of the use of special geographical indications (Trial) (hereinafter referred to as the measures), which marks the unification of special geographical indications in China, lays an important foundation for the establishment of the protection mode under the unified identification system of geographical indications, and will further improve the protection level of geographical indications in China.

The formulation of the "measures" is an important measure to promote the unified identification system of geographical indications. According to the relevant requirements of the plan for deepening the institutional reform of the party and the state and the institutional reform plan of the State Council adopted at the first session of the 13th National People's Congress, the State Intellectual Property Office is responsible for formulating and organizing the implementation of the unified identification system of geographical indications of origin. In order to effectively implement the reform requirements of the central government, the State Intellectual Property Office has defined the working ideas of realizing the unified acceptance channels, unified examination standards, unified announcement, unified special signs and unified supervision and protection of geographical indications. In July 2019, the State Intellectual Property Office synchronously started the drafting of management specifications for the design and use of special signs. In October 2019, the unified special signs for geographical indications were determined, and the announcement on the release of special signs for geographical indications and the announcement on the registration and filing of official signs for special signs for geographical indications were printed and issued, bringing the special signs for geographical indications into the protection of official signs. At the same time, on the basis of in-depth theoretical research, current situation investigation and extensive solicitation of opinions, the measures were drafted and approved by the executive meeting of the State Intellectual Property Office and published publicly.

the formulation of the "measures" is an important measure to strengthen unified supervision and protection and improve the protection level of geographical indications. Over the years, a variety of special signs for geographical indication products have been used together in China, which is not only not conducive to the identification of geographical indication products by consumers, but also increases the operating costs of some producers and increases the difficulty of geographical indication supervision and law enforcement. Determining the unified special signs for geographical indications and formulating the measures to standardize the use of special signs for geographical indications will help to improve the public's awareness of geographical indications, play a positive role in unifying the supervision and protection of geographical indications, and help to form a good atmosphere for the protection of geographical indications in the whole society.

the measures regulate the use and management of special signs from the following aspects. First, it defines the official logo attribute of the special logo. The Measures specify that special geographical indications are official signs, and the State Intellectual Property Office is responsible for uniformly formulating and Issuing the requirements for the use and management of special geographical indications, and organizing the implementation of the supervision and management of the use of special geographical indications. Anyone who does not comply with the provisions of the measures and without the consent of the State Intellectual Property Office shall not use the same or similar logo as the special logo. Second, the obligation to use is clear. The legal users of special signs include the producers who have been approved to use the special signs of geographical indication products by announcement, the collective members of the registrants who have been registered as collective trademarks by announcement, the licensees who have been registered as certification trademarks by announcement and filing, and other users who have been registered and filed by the State Intellectual Property Office. Unified special signs are not only applicable to geographical indication protected products, but also applicable to geographical indications registered as collective trademarks and certification trademarks, as well as other users registered and filed by the State Intellectual Property Office. Users of special geographical indications shall follow the principle of good faith, organize the production of geographical indication products in accordance with relevant standards, management specifications and use management rules, ensure that the geographical indication products using special geographical indications are produced in strict accordance with unified standards, specifications or rules, and ensure the specific quality of the products. In addition, those who hold public welfare activities related to geographical indications or have legitimate reasons and need to use special geographical indications shall obtain the use qualification of special geographical indications by applying to the State Intellectual Property Office for registration and filing. The third is to clarify the use requirements. The user shall mark the special signs of geographical indications as required, and mark the unified social credit code. The State Intellectual Property Office will rely on the geographical indication product protection data management system to generate a special logo with a unified social credit code for each legitimate user, and the Provincial Intellectual Property Management Department will be responsible for the download and distribution of the special logo of local users. At the same time, the user shall mark the corresponding geographical indication name, collective trademark or certification trademark and trademark registration number, the implemented geographical indication standard code or approval announcement number according to the actual situation. Marking the unified social credit code and trademark registration number is a significant difference between the measures and the previous requirements for the use and management of relevant special signs. It will provide a more intuitive judgment basis for the supervision and law enforcement of geographical indications, further improve the law enforcement level of geographical indication protection, and help to strengthen social supervision. Fourth, clarify the use of regulatory responsibilities. Local intellectual property management departments are responsible for the daily supervision of the use of special geographical indications, and encourage Provincial Intellectual Property management departments to disclose the use and daily supervision information of special geographical indications to the public through the geographical indication protection information platform. Users shall use special signs in accordance with the requirements of the measures. In case of violation of relevant regulations, the intellectual property management department shall stop its qualification for the use of special signs for geographical indications. If the special signs for geographical indications are used or forged without announcement, or words or patterns that may mislead consumers are used, resulting in consumers mistaking the product for geographical indications, the intellectual property management department and relevant law enforcement departments shall investigate and deal with it in accordance with laws, regulations and relevant provisions. The measures add institutional basis for further strengthening the protection and supervision of geographical indications, are conducive to the standardized use of special geographical indications, and play a positive role in safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of consumers and an orderly market environment.

. Next, the State Intellectual Property Office will organize all localities to actively and steadily promote the replacement of special geographical indications, further strictly standardize the review procedures and requirements for the application of special geographical indications, strengthen the daily supervision and dynamic management of the use of special geographical indications, constantly improve the protection level of geographical indications and promote the high-quality development of economy and society. First, actively and steadily promote the replacement of special geographical indications. Guide local intellectual property departments to formulate special work plans, refine promotion plans, steadily and orderly organize the downloading, printing and distribution of special geographical indications, and guide the legal users of geographical indications to complete the replacement of the original relevant special geographical indications in time. Second, strictly standardize the audit procedures and requirements for the declaration of special signs. According to the general survey of protected resources of geographical indications, strictly examine the qualifications of users and application materials of special geographical indications, and standardize the use of special geographical indications. Third, strengthen the supervision and management of the use of special geographical indications. Incorporate the use of special signs into the annual supervision and random inspection plan, and organize special random inspection. Focus on e-commerce websites, wechat, microblog, mobile applications, short video platforms and other sales platforms, take into account the physical retail and circulation market, and strengthen the active monitoring of the use of special geographical indications for relevant products and the investigation and handling of relevant reports and complaints. Fourth, carry out extensive publicity on the use and management of special geographical indications. Do a good job in information disclosure and service guidance of geographical indication protection. Encourage the timely provision of information on the use and supervision of special geographical indications to the public. Give full play to the supervision, coordination, demonstration and leading role of industry associations, leading enterprises and geographical indication product protection demonstration areas, and jointly improve the level of geographical indication protection. (the author is Zhang Zhicheng, director of the intellectual property protection department of the State Intellectual Property Office)