Significance of Trademark Searches in the United Arab Emirates
The survival and growth of any brand in a fiercely competitive market like the UAE depend upon the robustness of the brand protection strategies they adopt. The importance of brand value is more important than ever as the chances of infringement are high as more international brands are setting their feet in the UAE. Trademark registration and enforcement is the most crucial and primary step in brand protection. However, before registering the trademarks with the UAE Trademark Office, the companies need to conduct an effective trademark search to avoid the likelihood of opposition. Facing valid opposition after registering trademarks would lead to unnecessary delays and wastage of resources and money. To conduct an effective trademark search before the registration, the companies can hire the services of the best trademark agents in Dubai or the UAE.
What is a Trademark Search?
Trademark search in most cases can be considered as the preliminary step undertaken in the process of trademark registration. Brand owners monitor trademark publications and online databases to ensure that their potential trademark doesn’t infringe existing third-party trademarks. Registering trademarks in the UAE without conducting a proper trademark search increases the chances of the other party raising opposition.
For big brands, trademark registration is the first step in a wider spectrum of brand endorsement strategy. The brand owners invest a lot of money in promoting their brand after registering the trademarks with the UAE Trademark office. Any attempt to adopt trademarks that violate the third-party trademark rights will consume time and money.
How to Conduct Trademark Search in the UAE?
In the traditional methods, trademark agents in the UAE performed trademark searches for their clients by visiting the trademark office in person. They were required to search through the official trademark publications. However, in 2018 the trademark office launched an online portal, which enabled registered trademark agents to search the trademark register. The new method has reduced considerable time and expenses for the brand owners. The trademark agents can search for the existence of prior trademark in the following methods:
1. Identical Trademark Search
Brand owners need to search for the existence of trademarks that are visually or phonetically identical to their potential trademarks.
2. Similar Trademark Search
In this type of trademark search, the businesses need to ensure that their potential trademarks are not confusingly similar to existing trademarks.
3. Trademark Search with Opinion
This is one of the most crucial methods of trademark search in which the businesses go by the recommendation of a trademark attorney on similar prior trademarks.
4. Index Search
Through the index search, the brands can identify the companies with similar names to the search terms
5. In-use Verification Search
In this method, the brand owners can identify if a third party is properly using their trademark rights and such a search opens the door for opposing the registration.
Importance of Hiring Trademark Agents for Conducting Trademark Searches in the UAE
There are two options before the business owners to conduct the trademark searches before registration: the in-house option and hiring the best trademark agents for trademark search and registration purposes. In the first method, the companies can appoint a person in charge of conducting the trademark search.
However, the effectiveness of this method is doubtable and the risk of inaccuracies galore while doing the trademark search internally. Small companies that don’t aim for a wide reach for their brands often conduct trademark searches internally. However, trademark agents in Dubai, UAE recommend the companies hire the best intellectual property service providers for trademark searches.
Entrusting the responsibility of a trademark search with efficient trademark agents in the UAE minimizes many risks for the companies. The trademark agents from the full-fledged intellectual property firms come with years of experience in the field. An intellectual property firm is often a one-stop shop for all the services related to trademarks.
Trademark search is not the exclusive expertise of trademark agents as it is only one among the many services they offer. Hiring a trademark agent will cover all the other intellectual property rights services required by the company. It includes trademark search, trademark registration, recording the trademark with customs authorities to prevent infringement, etc.
The trademark agents will be aware of conducting searches in multiple jurisdictions. For the UAE, the trademark agents will search the national IP database. For conducting the search in multiple jurisdictions, the database of international organizations like WIPO can be used. In short, a trademark agent can conduct a comprehensive trademark search to unearth detailed information on conflicting trademarks existing in multiple jurisdictions.
Why Choose Jitendra Intellectual Property?
Jitendra Intellectual Property (JIP) is a full-service intellectual property service provider with years of commendable experience in the UAE. JIP has helped thousands of brand owners in successfully registering their trademarks in the UAE Trademark Office after conducting a proper trademark search. JIP’s trademark agents in the UAE are highly qualified and possess expertise in conducting comprehensive trademark searches across multiple jurisdictions. JIP’s trademark search methods are robust enough to detect the existence of conflicting trademarks. JIP is committed to ensuring that the businesses achieve their goals by successfully building a robust brand-building strategy.