Foreigners massively register trademarks in Russia

In 2024, 11.9 thousand applications for trademarks from foreign companies were submitted 18% more than in 2021. Most of them comes from companies from the IT sector, such as Nintendo, Qualcomm and Hitachi. Market participants believe that in this way manufacturers are reinsured from lifting legal protection from the brand, but they do not exclude the possibility of their return to the Russian market.

The number of applications for registering a trademark from foreign companies in 2024 exceeded the level of 2021 by 18%, the VTB and the company « Online Patent » said in a study by VTB. In total, 11.9 thousand applications were submitted in 2024, each tenth application belongs to the field of IT and electronics. Some of the last applications for trademarks submitted according to the Madrid system belong to the Japanese Nintendo (Pokemon Rumble game), manufacturer of Qualcomm processors (a trademark for the new brand of the organization of the Hitachi technique (a trademark of Zaxis excavators). All three companies did not answer Kommersant.

The Madrid system of registration of trademarks is an international mechanism that allows you to register a trademark in several countries through the submission of one application to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIS). The applicant submits documents through the National Office (for example, Rospatent in Russia) or directly to WIS, indicating the countries where protection is needed.

On May 13, Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting with members of the All -Russian Public Organization « Business Russia » said that it « comes to him by representatives of the Western business with a request to give them the opportunity to work in the country » (See “Kommersant” from May 14).

At the end of April, it became known that the American Intel and Microsoft, as well as the South Korean LG registered their brands in the Russian Federation. However, there is no direct activity from Western IT companies, says the director of the Association of Computer and Information Technologies (APKIT, includes 1C, T1, Lanit, etc.) Nikolai Komlev. However, he notes, Russian representatives of IT business are expecting the return of leading world brands to the Russian Federation, especially in part of electronics. We can talk about protecting the intellectual property of foreign business in the Russian Federation, says the representative of the OCS distributor: “If you do not extend the rights to trademarks in a timely manner, competitors can use them.” Earlier, Rospatent first removed the defense from the Foreign Brand Ericsson and handed over to the Russian manufacturer of Rusklimat air conditioners (See “Kommersant” from March 20).

The interlocutor of Kommersant among electronics manufacturers confirms that companies can register new trademarks in case of return. “In order not to sue and not have problems with the restoration of the rights to the sign, the departed vendors are re -registered,” he says.

Registration of trademarks by foreign copyright holders was activated for several reasons, adds a partner of the Pen & Paper lawyers college Sergei Teacher: in 2025, a three -year term expires from the moment of the beginning of Western copyright holders from Russia, which means that formal prerequisites arise in order to try ahead of schedule for legal protection of their trademarks on the territory of the Russian Federation. “A number of copyright holders from unfriendly countries do not lose hope of returning to the Russian market, which means that it will be necessary to protect their exclusive rights to offered goods, as well as mechanisms for combating counterfeit and channels of non -authorized deliveries,” he says.

Registration of a trademark in Russia will cost cheaper than potential losses when losing control over the brand, especially in areas where the brand works for recognition: electronics, FMCG, gaming, adds the managing partner of the law firm ation Law Polina Bartholomeeva. In general, we can expect a further increase in the number of applications from foreign companies, says Yuri Khalimovsky, the head of intellectual property practice in the DRT: “Lack of attention to his intellectual property can lead to its loss, irreparable in the future.”

Timothy Kornev