Research On The Effectiveness Of Trademark Coexistence Agreements

The trademark coexistence agreement is one of the reasons for the formation of concurrent trademark use,and the number of adjudications related to the trademark coexistence agreement is increasing year by year.This article uses an empirical analysis method and study the effectiveness of the trademark coexistence agreement from the perspective of trademark law and contract law,analyze the impact of available supplementary evidence and Internet development,Finally came to a conclusion that the trademark coexistence agreement can be used as important reference evidence in trademark registration procedure and trademark infringement cases.If the trademark coexistence agreement meets the requirements for the establishment of the contract,and the trademarks are not exactly same,its effectiveness shall be affirmed.In addition to the introduction and conclusion part,this article is divided into four chapters.The introduction part introduces the theoretical research of China.Different scholars have different views on concurrent trademark use,and the definitions of coexistence are different from each other,which also leads to differences in understanding of coexisting trademarks.The first chapter defines the concepts of trademark coexistence and trademark coexistence agreement.And this part analyzes a large number of cases related with the trademark coexistence agreement in practice.There are some problems such as excessive emphasis on formalism,inconsistent determination of the effectiveness of the trademark coexistence agreement,unclear responsibility to prove the existence of trademark coexistence.The second chapter analyzes the effectiveness of the coexistence agreement from the perspective of trademark law.Trademark law is a private law.The Legislative purpose of Chinese trademark law includes protection of consumers,but this is an indirect protection,protection of trademark exclusive rights is the core of trademark law.The trademark owner's judgment on confusion should take precedence if there is a trademark coexistence agreement.However,the same trademarks on same or similar commodity cannot be coexisted due to the necessity of distinction.Tolerance for consumer confusion exists in the design of some trademark law systems.From the perspective of the institutional structure of the trademark law,the trademark coexistence agreement can be accepted in our country.The third chapter analyzes the validity of the trademark coexistence agreement from the perspective of contract law.The trademark coexistence agreement must meet the requirements of the trademark law and the contract law.The contract parties of the trademark coexistence agreement are required to be a qualified trademark owner.An Effective trademark coexistence agreement requires the parties to be in good faith.They don't want to steal others goodwill.Good faith judgments can be considered from the historical conditions,popularity,and use of trademarks of both parties.Potential damage to the public interest can be considered as a negation of the effectiveness of a trademark coexistence agreement.The fourth chapter is the other considerations for the validity of the trademark coexistence agreement.In our current legislation,there is no clear stipulation on the trademark coexistence agreement,and in the case of inconsistent judicial practice,operators can use consumer surveys to support agreement.Although the information on the Internet can break through geographical restrictions,the influence of trademarks on the Internet can still be determined according to its sales volume and page view.