TRADEMARK, COPYRIGHT AND PATENT REGISTRATION GUIDE

The Singapore PIC Grant covers a minimum of 60%

of the cost of Trademark Registration

Copyright © 2014 Rikvin Pte LtdLast Updated on February 21, 2014

WHAT IS A TRADEMARK?

A trademark is a letter, word, name, signature, numeral, device, brand, heading, label, ticket, shape,

color, aspect of packaging or a combination of these, which is used in the course of a business or trade

to distinguish a person’s goods or services from those of others. Over a period of time trademarks also

gain a strong recall value.

See how many brands can you recall just by looking at the trademark.

IDENTIFYING TRADEMARKS

Commonly-used symbols to identify a trademark are ® and TM. The two symbols have different indications.

• ® refers to a registered and therefore protected trademark pursuant to trademark laws.

• TM is merely a symbol used to identify that the mark is being used as a trademark by the owner. It

however does not denote that the mark is registered and protected under trademark laws.

Copyright © 2014 Rikvin Pte LtdLast Updated on February 21, 2014

Although it is not compulsory to register a

trademark for your goods and services, a

trademark gives you, the owner, the rights that

enable you to

• control the use of the sign and prevent

any potential misuse

• add value to the goods or services

provided

• create a strong brand recognition and

brand recall by continuous usage

However, if a mark is not registered, you can

only rely on the common law remedies against

imitation and infringement.

Availing and enforcing such remedies are not only

time consuming, but also very expensive and can

affect the smooth operations of your business.

Therefore it is highly recommended that you

register your trademark to avoid future problems.

A trademark grants the owner of the mark

statutory right to use and exploit the mark in the

jurisdiction of its registration and certain priorities

and advantages in registering the trademark in

other jurisdictions.

Some of the key benefits include:

• Right to exclusive usage of the mark

• Barring others from copying it

• Benefiting from the increasing market

value of the mark

• Quality assurance for your customers

• Branding through mark recognition

• License for commercial use to third

parties thus creating a source of revenue

• Tax advantages in a jurisdiction like

Singapore, like PIC credit

BENEFITS OF TRADEMARK REGISTRATION

Copyright © 2014 Rikvin Pte LtdLast Updated on February 21, 2014

WHEN TO APPLY FOR PATENT

The patent system in Singapore operates on a

first-to-file basis.

In other words, the first person to file an

application will, in general, have priority over

others for the same invention. Singapore, like

many countries, allows priority claims to be made

in a patent application.

If you have an application filed earlier in a Paris

Convention country or a World Trade Organization

member country, you may claim this earlier

filed application as priority in your subsequent

Singapore patent application, provided that the

Singapore application is made within 12 months

from the Date of Filing of the earlier application.

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

A complete patent application in Singapore shall

contain the following:

• Patents Form 1 (2004).

• A description of your invention. The

description should describe at least one

way of carrying out the invention claimed,

with examples, where appropriate, and

with reference to the drawings, if any.

• One or more claim(s). The claims

define the scope of protection you are

seeking for your invention and should be

supported by the description.

• Any drawing(s) referred to in the

description or any claim(s).

• An abstract of your invention. This is a

summary of the invention and is used in

the publication of the patent application.

APPLYING FOR A PATENT IN SINGAPORE

Copyright © 2014 Rikvin Pte LtdLast Updated on February 21, 2014

BENEFITS OF USING SINGAPORE FOR TRADEMARK REGISTRATION

• Faster process compared to other jurisdictions

• The registration is valid for 10 years

• As Singapore is a country under the Madrid Protocol, after the trademark has been successfully registered in Singapore, an application to file for TM registration in any of the 90 countries registered under the Madrid system

• Singapore Treaty on the Law of Trademarks has 30 contracting parties, including Austria, Australia, Denmark, Italy, UK, and USA, among others, and establishes common standards for procedural aspects of trademark registration and licensing

• Under the Productivity and Innovation Credit Scheme, you can get a 400% tax deduction or up to S$60,000 in cash payouts when you refister a Trademark in Singapore.

HOW TO REGISTER A TRADEMARK

A trademark must be distinctive and distinguishes

the goods or services of the owner from similar

goods or services from other traders.

A trademark application is generally rejected if

the mark does not have a distinctive character,

i.e. descriptive marks, which describe a quality,

quantity, value, intended purpose or geographical

origin, or marks that are common to the trade,

contrary to public policy or morality, deceptive,

identical or similar to an already registered mark

or well-known marks.

The process of a trademark registration includes:

• Submission of trademark application

• Examination of formalities

• Trademark search

• Examination of trademark

• Publication

• Opposition proceedings

• Registration

REGISTERING A TRADEMARK IN SINGAPORE

Register your Trademark with Rikvin and we will help you apply for PIC

Copyright © 2015 Rikvin Pte Ltd

RIKVIN PTE LTD

30 Cecil Street, #19-08 Prudential Tower, Singapore 049712

Main Line : (+65) 6320 1888 Fax : (+65) 6438 2436 Email : info@rikvin.com Website : www.rikvin.com

Reg No 200100602K EA License No 11C3030

The information contained herein is intended for general information purposes only and shall not be regarded as professional advice. Readers are therefore advised that before acting on any matter arising from these notes, they should discuss their particular situation with the Firm. No liability can be accepted for any action taken as result of reading the notes without prior consultation with regard to all relevant factors.

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