- Establishing an e-commerce website
The e-commerce website is an electronic information page set up to serve part of or the entire process of buying and selling goods or providing services, from displaying and introducing goods and services to entering into contracts, service provisions, payments, and after-sales services.
To make business investment activities more effective in the era of Industrial revolution 4.0, e-commerce websites are one of the effective forms that businesses choose to promote their products and services, as well as bring products and services closer to customers. However, an e-commerce website is not a must for businesses.
A sales e-commerce website must provide sufficient information about the website owner, goods and services, and sales contract terms applicable to the goods and services introduced on the website.
Two conditions for setting up a sales e-commerce website:
- Being an investor, organization, or individual who has been provided with a personal tax identification number.
- having informed the Ministry of Industry and Trade about the establishment of the e-commerce website selling goods through the online notification tool on the e-commerce management portal.
(Article 52 of Decree No. 52/2013/ND-CP and Decree No. 08/2018/ND-CP)
Notification is a necessary and mandatory procedure since there are currently millions of websites with various content on the internet. As it is impossible for the authorities to control contents and operations of all websites, the notification is meaningful and necessary.
- Trademark registration
Trademark is defined as a sign used to distinguish goods and services of different organizations and individuals. Trademark registration is not a mandatory procedure, but trademark registration will help investors:
Firstly, to have the exclusive right to use the trademark. When a trademark is registered, it will be fully protected by law. As such, no individual or organization has the right to use a similar mark in the same field without the trademark owner’s permission. This makes your product unique in the market, helping consumers to distinguish one brand’s products from another.
Secondly, to protect trademarks from infringements. This protection comes from the law, when you are granted a protection title, meaning that your intellectual property rights have been recognized by law. When there is an infringement of your trademark ownership, the owner can immediately use self-defense and protected rights provided by state agencies.
Thirdly, to raise the brand value. A protected trademark will make infringement of intellectual property rights impossible; at the same time, this also protects consumers from buying counterfeit goods, thereby gaining trust and favor from customers.
According to data from the National Office of Intellectual Property for the second quarter of 2021, the number of new trademark registration applications was 12,450, an increase of 130% compared to the first quarter of 2021. New applications are mainly in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, which are 8,157 in total, accounting for 66% of the total applications in the country.
The competent authority will receive the application for trademark registration, examine the form of the application for registration of the mark, publish the application for trademark registration, examine the application content for trademark registration, and collect the fee for the grant of a protection title; issue a decision to grant or refuse to grant a trademark protection title within 2-3 months from the date of fee payment and about 12 -18 months from the date of acceptance of a valid application.
Trademarks will be protected for 10 years from the application date (priority date). Enterprises can renew their protection titles with no limit on the number of renewals. Therefore, the trademark will be an asset throughout the operation and business process of the enterprise.
- Competent authority: National Office of Intellectual Property.
- Common difficulties when implementing trademark registration:
+ Difficulty in performing the search and identification of duplicate marks, the possibility of trademark registration.
+ Difficulties and troubles in registration procedures, such as:
In case the National Office of Intellectual Property issues a notice of its intention to refuse to accept a valid application or to refuse to register a mark, the enterprise shall correct the shortcomings in the application or object to the notice of the Office (if any).
If it is notified by the National Office of Intellectual property that an enterprise’s application is opposed by another individual or organization, the enterprise must amend the marking template, revise the list of goods and services in the application, or give objections to the petition. As investors may face certain difficulties in thoroughly checking the legal regulations and looking up the validity of the logo before protection, it is necessary to carefully study the legal regulations to make the most effective protection registration.
With the continuous development of the market economy, many businesses are newly established, and an increasing number of brands are brought to the market. More and more businesses are actively protecting their trademarks, logos, and trademarks as these are being protected by law. As logos and brand images are diverse and rich, they can create confusion and overlaps.