How use and non-use investigations help your company expand its business

Indonesia is a country with abundant natural resources, a trained workforce, and a large growing domestic market. Combined with an improving investment climate and a higher global profile, all the aforementioned capitals would make Indonesia a potential site of investment, especially for business expansions. When companies want to expand their businesses (especially if it is an overseas expansion), many factors will be taken into account. One factor that is very important and must not be overlooked is the comprehension of trademark regulations in the designated country.

In Indonesia, trademark registration is managed by the Directorate General of Intellectual Property (DGIP). The institution has the right to reject a trademark registration if the trademark has been registered earlier by another party. Products with identical names and classifications will have their trademark rejected. In other words, if it has the same trademark name but a different product classification, the trademark will still be able to be registered, and vice versa. The legal basis for such a trademark registration process is Regulation of Law and Human Rights No. 67 the Year 2016 on Trademark Registration.

Use And Non-use Investigations

Integrity Indonesia has received many requests from many international companies that encounter trouble in trademark registration. It appears that many trademarks are registered with identical names, and these trademarks have been registered earlier by another party. Furthermore, it is often revealed that products with a registered trademark do not exist in the market. Checks will be needed to ensure that the registered trademark is not circulated in the market. When these things have been verified, the client may proceed to the next step to be able to register their own trademark to the respective institutions. After the investigations have been completed, the client may file the Cancellation Action with 3 requirements: a notarized and legalized Power of Attorney (a copy form is enclosed), articles of association of the company (if the plaintiff is a company), and the evidence of non-use of the adverse party’s trademark.

In investigation activities, use or non-use investigation is a term used to describe whether certain products have been circulating in the market or not. Integrity Indonesia conducts an investigation on the existence of the product and also conducts market surveys in big cities in Indonesia in order to check the availability of the product.

How Investigations Protect A Company’s Asset

An investigation starts with checks in the database of DGIP in order to know the party who registered the trademark. While the party is usually a company, there are cases where it is an individual. With investigations covering the initial check, the registrant name, its address, product classification, trademark logo, registration date, and registration expiration date, the identity of the party which registers a product will be revealed. A discreet check will be conducted to the company or individual later in order to get information related to the existence of the registered product.

A field survey along with an investigation is conducted to directly know the condition on the field. The survey will be conducted in big cities in Indonesia depending on the expansion needs of the client. The survey will also be focused on stores related to the usage of the product. While conducting the survey, a statement letter explaining the inexistence of the product is usually prepared. The letter will be given to the visited store to get the signed statement, and it will be required later to register the trademark. The results of the field surveys and investigation are given by Integrity Indonesia will help clients to manage their assets, protect their intellectual property, and make informed decisions to manage risks during a business expansion.

Should you need more detailed information about the use and non-use investigation and how we can help you with other mitigation solutions, do not hesitate to contact our sales representative via contact@integrity-indonesia.com