Measures for the Recognition and Protection of Famous Trademarks in Hunan Province

Article 1 In order to regulate the identification of famous trademarks, protect the legitimate rights and interests of the owners of famous trademarks, and promote economic development. These measures are formulated in accordance with relevant state regulations and in light of the actual conditions of the province.

Article 2 The administrative department for industry and commerce shall be responsible for the identification and protection of famous trademarks.

Article 3 The determination of a famous trademark shall follow the principles of openness, fairness and impartiality.

Article 4 A famous trademark shall meet the following conditions:

(1) The trademark has been registered for three years (high-tech commodity trademark has been registered for one year);

(2) The goods using the trademark have high reputation in domestic and foreign markets;

(3) The main economic indicators such as sales, profits and taxes, market share and other major economic indicators using the trademark have been leading in the same industry in the province or in China in the past three years;

(4) The goods using the trademark are of good quality.

Article 5 The principle of voluntariness shall be applied to the application for the recognition of a famous trademark.

If the owner of a registered trademark in this province believes that the registered trademark meets the conditions stipulated in Article 4 of these Measures, he may apply for the recognition of a famous trademark.

Production-oriented enterprises established within the territory of our province are permitted to use the registered trademarks of the owners of registered trademarks outside the province, and if they meet the conditions specified in Article 4 of these Measures, they may also apply for the recognition of famous trademarks.

Article 6 To apply for the recognition of a famous trademark, the applicant must file an application with the provincial administration for industry and commerce, and provide the following materials:

(1) A photocopy of the business license or other qualification certificates;

(2) A copy of the Trademark Registration Certificate;

(3) Evidence that the main economic indicators such as sales, profits and taxes, market share and other major economic indicators using the trademark have been leading in the same industry in the province or in China in the past three years;

(4) Evidence of the sales area of ​​the goods using the trademark;

(5) The quality certificate of the goods using the trademark.

Article 7 After receiving the application, the provincial administration for industry and commerce shall review and verify the submitted certification materials. If it meets the requirements of a famous trademark, it shall be recognized as a famous trademark and announced; if it does not meet the requirements of a famous trademark, it shall not be recognized, but the applicant shall be notified in writing and the reasons shall be explained.

When the provincial administration for industry and commerce recognizes a famous trademark, it shall solicit the opinions of the quality and technical supervision department, industry competent department, industry association, consumer committee and other units, as well as the city and state administration for industry and commerce where the applicant is located.

The identification of a famous trademark shall be decided by the heads of the provincial administration for industry and commerce through collective discussion.

The recognition of famous trademarks is generally conducted once a year.

Article 8 The validity period of a famous trademark is 3 years from the date of announcement. If the validity period of a famous trademark expires and the qualification of a famous trademark needs to be retained, it shall re-apply for recognition within one month before the expiry date.

Article 9 For the identification of a famous trademark, no other fees shall be charged to the applicant except for the evaluation fee and announcement fee as required. The evaluation fee and announcement fee standard shall be approved by the provincial price authority.

Article 10 A well-known trademark shall start from the date of publication. If others use the same characters of the famous trademark as part of the enterprise name or the name of the enterprise in the same industry, which may cause misunderstanding by the public, the administration for industry and commerce shall not approve the registration; if it has been registered, the owner of the famous trademark may within two years from the date on which they knew or should have known. Request the administration for industry and commerce to revoke it.

Article 11 Others use the same or similar words and graphics of a well-known trademark as a commodity name, decoration or as an unregistered trademark on a non-similar commodity, which is enough to cause consumers to misunderstand that the commodity has a certain relationship with the owner of the famous trademark. If the rights and interests of the owner of the famous trademark are damaged, the administrative department for industry and commerce shall deal with it in accordance with the provisions of Article 16 of these Measures.

Article 12 The owner of a famous trademark may use the logo of "Hunan Province Famous Trademark" on the goods and their packaging, decoration, manuals and advertisements for which the famous trademark is registered and approved.

If it is not recognized as a famous trademark, no unit or individual may use the "Hunan Province Famous Trademark" logo on commodities, commodity packaging, decoration, manuals, advertisements and trade activities.

Article 13 Under any of the following circumstances, the owner of a famous trademark shall go through relevant formalities in accordance with the "Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China" and its implementing rules, and report to the provincial administration for industry and commerce for the record:

(1) The name and address of the owner of the famous trademark are changed;

(2) The owner of a famous trademark assigns its famous trademark according to law;

(3) The owner of a famous trademark legally permits others to use its famous trademark.

Article 14 Administrative departments for industry and commerce at all levels shall strengthen the supervision and inspection of the use and protection of famous trademarks, crack down on counterfeiting of famous trademarks, and effectively protect the legitimate rights and interests of the owners of famous trademarks.

Article 15 Under any of the following circumstances, the provincial administration for industry and commerce shall revoke its famous trademark qualification:

(1) The applicant has falsified and forged proof materials. Defrauding a famous trademark;

(2) The use of the logo of "Hunan Province Famous Trademark" beyond the scope of goods approved for the registration of a famous trademark, and refusal to make corrections;

(3) Within the validity period, it does not meet the conditions of a famous trademark due to quality and other issues.

Article 16 Those who fall under the circumstances specified in Article 11 of these Measures shall be ordered to make corrections within a time limit; if corrections are not made within the time limit, a fine of not more than 10,000 yuan shall be imposed.

Article 17 Anyone who violates the provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 12 of these Measures shall be ordered by the industrial and commercial administration department at or above the county level to remove the famous trademark sign, and a fine of less than 10,000 yuan may be imposed concurrently.

Article 18 Anyone who infringes on the exclusive right to use a famous trademark of others shall be punished in accordance with the provisions of the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China and its implementing rules.

Article 19 If the staff members of the administrative department for industry and commerce engage in favoritism, abuse of power, or dereliction of duty in the process of identifying a famous trademark, if a crime is constituted, they shall be investigated for criminal responsibility according to law; if a crime is not constituted, they shall be given administrative sanctions according to law.

Article 20 The provisions of these Measures also apply to service marks.

Article 21 These Measures shall come into force on May 1, 2001.