Unfair/unauthorized use of others' Trademarks on products Interpretation of Complaint Reason
 Definition
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Unfair/unauthorized use of others' Trademarks on products The trademark or logo that prominently appears on the product information page is identical to the registered trademark of the rights holder.
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Types of Proof
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Test buy: The rights holder conducted a test-buy of the product and confirms it to be counterfeit or pirated.
Trade Manager: The seller has admitted through Trade Manager chat tool that the product is counterfeit.
Judicial judgment or administrative decision: Confirmed as infringement through judicial or administrative decisions.
Other forms: Other means of proof besides the above.
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Scenario
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The product sold by seller is not counterfeit, but the trademark used by seller is similar to the trademark of the right holder, and there is a judicial judgment or administrative decision confirming the trademark as infringing.
For example:The right holder’s registered trademark is “ABC”, while the trademark used on the seller's product is “ABCD”, which does not identically match the right holder’s trademark, but the right holder has a judicial judgment or administrative decision confirming the infringement of “ABC” by “ABCD”. In this circumstance, right holder can submit a complaint under "Unfair/unauthorized to use of others' Trademarks on products".
Example of infringing product:
Complaint reasons description:Please describe the features of the infringement, for example, the seller uses "ABCD" on the products or the product detail page, which constitutes an infringement of our brand "ABC".
Supporting evidence: Please provide a judicial judgment or administrative decision confirming infringement of the similar trademark.
Note: The images of infringement in the above are designed for reference rather than for sale.
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FAQ from Rights Holders
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- Q: What is the difference between "Unfair/unauthorized use of others' trademark on products" and "Counterfeit"?
A: Commonalities: There is trademark infringement on the product.
Differences: "Counterfeit goods" are goods sold by sellers that will certainly make consumers mistakenly believe that they are right holder's products; it is the use of the same trademark on the same goods without the permission of the registered trademark holder.
"Unfair/unauthorized use of others' Trademarks on products" mainly refers to the unauthorized use of the same/similar trademarks on the same/similar goods. Although it will not cause consumers to mistakenly believe that the goods are fake, it will cause consumers to be confused. This can include where the use of a trademark similar to its registered trademark features on the same product ,without the permission of the trademark registrant; or where a trademark that is the same or similar to its registered trademark is used on similar goods, where it is likely to cause confusion.
- Q: When should I submit a complaint based on "Unfair/unauthorized use of others' trademark on products" ?
A: Including but not limited to: Scenario 1: The trademark is used on the seller’s product or on the product information page is inconsistent with yours, but you have a judicial judgment or administrative decision to support trademark infringement. Scenario 2: the category of the seller’s product is inconsistent with the approved use category of your trademark, but you have a judicial judgment or administrative decision to support trademark infringement.
- Q: What does it mean when the products subject to a complaint do not fall into the scope of goods/services covered and protected by my trademark registration?
A: Trademark protection is limited to the class(s) covered by a trademark registration, and it may only constitute trademark infringement where the product subject to a complaint falls into the scope of goods covered by the trademark registration.
For example: Where the rights holder has registered a trademark in class, 3 but tries to submit trademark complaint against products in class 25 based on the trademark in class 3, the products subject to the complaint do not fall into the class covered by the rights holder’s trademark, and therefore may not constitute infringement.