What happens if two applicants file similar trademark applications on the same day? Who gets priority? How does the IP office deal with this situation? Article 31 of China Trademark Law lays out the provisions for same-day applications as such: “Where two or more applicants apply to register identical or similar trademarks for use on the same kind of goods or similar goods, the trademark office shall first conduct examination of, give approval to and announce the trademark whose registration is applied for earlier than the rest. Where the applications are filed on the same day, the trademark office shall first examine, give approval to and announce the trademark which is used earlier that the rest, and it shall reject the applications for registration of the other trademarks and shall not announce them.”
商標とは・商標登録とは vol.1
Aeon applied for a trademark for Jusco in March of this year. When the application information was made public, there was an uproar on social media among super tour enthusiasts, with comments such as “It’s nostalgic” and “Is it the return of Jusco?”