An Inquiry Into Well-known Trademark Dilution Issues

Trademark dilution, mainly refers to an act of, at any time after the owner's mark has become famous, lessening the distinctiveness or undermining the business reputation of a well-known trademark due to the result of an association arising from the similarity and/or identical between the famous mark and a mark or trade name which was commercially used later on product and/or service in different classification, regardless of the presence or absence of competition, of actual or likely confusion, misunderstanding, deception, or of actual economic injury. Trademark dilution weakens the typicality and purchasing power of a trademark.Confusion theory is usually used to protect well-known trademark worldwide, while the dilution doctrine made a break-through of the limits of confusion theory with the purpose of protecting the potential commercial value of trademark without being illegal erosion and share. From "confusion" to "association", the trademark dilution doctrine now goes further up to its periphery such as domain dilution and goodwill dilution. This doctrine has been applied in many fields, such as international convention, domestic trademark law, especially U.S trademark law and judicial practices. As a rising and developing legal system and juristic theory, its judicial practices reflect the different understanding. The main debate and discussion, which represents the interests fighting between trademark holders and the users, are far to an end as follows: dilution to inherent distinctiveness and dilution to acquired distinctiveness; likelihood of dilution and actual dilution; monopoly use and free speech.Demonstrations show that the Chinese legislation seemingly has intent to borrow ideas from or had established dilution doctrine although it in fact wanders between confusion theory and dilution doctrine, while Chinese judicial practices have made break-through on this issue. The author of this paper advocates the introduction of dilution doctrine and association theory with the analysis of asset property of trademark on the basis of American trademark theoretical fruits and its judicial practices, and proposes detailed system design for bettering the Chinese protection of well-known trademark law.