1) Community Trademark
A Community Trademark is a trade mark valid across the European Union, registered with the Trademarks and Design Registration Office of the EU in accordance with the provisions of the Community Trademark Regulations.
Scope and validity
A Community Trademark is valid in the European Union as a whole. It is not possible to limit the geographic scope of protection to certain Member States.
A Community Trademark is valid for 10 years and can be renewed indefinitely for periods of ten years.
Level of protection
A Community Trademark confers on its proprietor an exclusive right to use the trade mark and to prevent third parties to use, without consent, the same or a similar mark for identical or similar goods and/or services as those protected by the COMMUNITY TRADEMARK.
The Community Trademark system provides for one single registration procedure, consisting of:
a single application
a single language of procedure
a single administrative centre and
a single file to be managed.
The Community Trademark grants its owner an exclusive right in the 27 member states of the European Union at a reasonable cost.
2) Registered Community design
A Registered Community Design is an exclusive right for the outward appearance of a product or part of it, resulting from the features (in particular, the lines, contours, colours, shape, texture and/or materials) of the product itself and/or its ornamentation.
Scope and validity
An Registered Community Design is valid in the European Union as a whole. It is not possible to limit the geographic scope of protection to certain Member States.
An Registered Community Design initially has a life of 5 years from the date of filing and can be renewed in periods of five years up to a maximum of 25 years.
Level of protection
Holders of valid registered designs have exclusive rights to use the design concerned and to prevent any third party from using it anywhere within the European Union. They will be protected against both deliberate copying and the independent development of a similar design.
The rights cover, in particular, the making, offering, marketing, importing, exporting or use of a product in which the design is incorporated or to which it is applied, or holding stock of such a product for those purposes.
A single legal system applies to Community designs, providing strong and uniform protection throughout the European Union.
The Registered Community Design system consists of a simple registration procedure:
a single application
a single language of filing
a single administrative centre
a single file to be managed
a single payment
the possibility to file multiple applications (i.e. to include several designs in one application, such as a whole range of similar products)
the possibility to keep the design confidential for up to 30 months
During the examination, the applications are checked mainly for formalities (e.g. no search for novelty).
The Registered Community Design confers on its holder the exclusive right to use it in the 27 Member States of the European Union. It prevents any third party of using the Registered Community Design without the consent of the holder.
(Source: Trademarks and Design Registration Office of the EU)
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