The process of monitoring of trademark applications is called trademark monitoring. It aims to find competing similar or identical trademarks for goods and / or services. The monitoring is carried out on the territory of countries of interest.  Trademark registration confers the monopoly right on its owner. He may use the mark for all goods and services under the protection obtained. Also, prohibit third parties from using the mark for identical or similar goods and services. The monopoly right applies to the territory of the countries where the registration is valid. The requirement for registerability of a trademark and the related uniqueness

of the sign is a prerequisite for the prohibition of an identical or similar mark to be registered by a third party and to cover the goods and services for which this sign has been registered.

Preventing unfair intentions to register such a trademark and preventing consumers from being misled if such registration occurs are part of the trademark use and protection strategy and are known as trademark monitoring.

It is common practice for trademark owners to use the services of patent law firms or industrial property representatives. They usually, in addition to protecting rights to patents, utility models, trademarks, industrial designs, also monitor trademarks. Industrial property professionals are aware of the sources of information and the various trademark monitoring platforms. The methods vary according to the type of the specific trademark – word, figurative, combined, etc. The goal is to get reliable

results from the monitoring carried out. Adapted and improved means are used to monitor the whole flow of trademarks filed with national (before BPO) or regional (before international organizations ) route and then identify all applications related to the monitored trademark, against which it may be necessary to file an opposition or objection, or taking other action in respect of an actual or potential infringement of the rights of a protected trademark.

What is the trademark monitoring process?

Trademark monitoring makes it possible to warn the proprietor of the intention of other persons/companies to register a similar trademark. The practice of industrial property offices, imposed by the relevant legal rules regarding the granting of trademark protection, is usually not related to the examination of the existence of older similar trademarks. If the trademark filed meets the other requirements of the law, the trademark will be registered, even if there is a possibility of confusion for consumers. Hence the need for the owner of a registered trademark to monitor all filed applications. This will allow him to react in a timely manner in case of filing an identical or similar mark. In this case, opposition to trademark registration may be filed. This prevents trademark registration, which would infringe his rights or confuse consumers. Ultimately, the registration of such a mark would deprive him of the benefits of the protection granted to him.

What is important during the trademark monitoring?

It should be noted that the monitoring of the filed applications for trademark registration provides at an early stage sufficient information about the development of competing companies and their competitive goods and/or services, which in itself is a sufficiently important reason for monitoring. Obtaining this information about the intentions and activities of the competition is an important step in developing a strategy that will allow the trademark owner to make the most of it as an asset of the company.

This process needs to be done periodically. Depending on the information provided by national/regional authorities for applied/registered national/regional marks, the period is also determined. The information obtained from monitoring must also be linked to the relevant actions that the proprietor of the protected trademark may take, and in particular to the time limits within which such actions are legally admissible.