Difference in registration of Company Names and Trademarks
Separate laws and systems regulate the registration of company names, business names and trademarks in Hong Kong. A company name registration at the Companies Registry or a business name registration at the Business Registration Office (Inland Revenue Department) is not the same as a trademark registration at the Trade Marks Registry. A business or company name registration is not an indication of trademark rights.
There have been recent reports of registered trademarks or well-known trademarks being registered without authorization as company names with the Companies Registry (often with a minor variation of the name). We understand that such company name registrations are then used outside Hong Kong (principally in the Mainland) as a cover for promoting or dealing in infringing trademark goods.
A Hong Kong business registration certificate or a company registration certificate does not by itself indicate that the business or company has rights to use its name or a trademark in promoting or dealing in goods and services.
A trademark registration is a guarantee of trademark rights registered in Hong Kong *. On-line and free of charge, you can check registered trademarks, owners and persons or companies licensed to use the trademarks in Hong Kong at :http://ipsearch.ipd.gov.hk
Furthermore, to address possible misunderstanding of the Hong Kong system in the Mainland, we have arranged a number of events to promote a better knowledge of our system among businessmen and at the local government level. We shall particularly stress that a company registration is not an indication of intellectual property rights.
