The China National Intellectual Property Administration responded that the trademark of "Shanhe University" was preemptively registered by enterprises as company | trademark | enterprise

Recently, a fictional university called "Shanhe University" has become popular online. The birth of this "university" originated from a joke made by netizens -3.43 million candidates from four provinces of Shandong, Shanxi, Henan, and Hebei can create a comprehensive university at the border of the four provinces for 1000 yuan each, catering to the enrollment of the "four provinces". Subsequently, the admission notice, school emblem, and motto were also designed by netizens, sparking heated discussions.

On July 6th, the Ministry of Education also responded to the hot topic of "Shanhe University" among netizens at a press conference. At the same time, Red Star News reporters noticed that the trademark of "Shanhe University" is being registered by enterprises, and the international classification involves education, entertainment, office supplies, etc. The current status is "waiting for acceptance".

▲ The emblem of "Shanhe University" is displayed on the internet

Shanhe University is booming on the internet

Causing attention from the Ministry of Education

After the appearance of the university logo products such as the motto and logo of "Shanhe University", students from four provinces, including Henan and Hebei, left messages under the relevant video of "Shanhe University" in Tiktok, saying that students and university professional groups in four provinces could be formed. In addition, related accounts of "Shanhe University" appeared on the microblog, sending out various group chat QR codes, university uniforms, admission notices and other information.

▲ "Shanhe University" Admission Notice Image Network

Regarding the explosive phenomenon of "Shanhe University" on the internet, netizens say that the so-called "Shanhe University" appears to be the self entertainment of students from the four provinces, but in fact, it is the expectation for future education in the "Shanhe Four Provinces" under rational entertainment.

On July 6th, the State Council Information Office held a series of themed press conferences on "Authoritative Department Talks at the Beginning". Regarding the recent appearance of "Shanhe University" online, Vice Minister of Education Wu Yan responded that the Ministry of Education has paid attention to "Shanhe University".

Faced with the new situation of higher education entering a new stage of popularization and the new challenges and problems in serving regional economic and social development, the Ministry of Education will continuously optimize the layout structure of higher education resources around the major strategy of enhancing national competitiveness, serving economic and social development, and promoting common prosperity for all people. It will support the central and western regions, especially populous provinces, to expand the scale of higher education resources, optimize the type structure and regional structure.

If a company's trademark application fails

May affect its intellectual property layout

With the increasing popularity of "Shanhe University", some netizens recently discovered that the Tianyancha App shows that some companies have registered the "Shanhe University" trademark, including a technology company in Shanghai and a stationery company in Luohe. The international classification involves education, entertainment, office supplies, etc. All trademarks are currently under application.

On July 11th, a reporter from Red Star News found that there were 9 registration numbers on the trademark search page of "Shanhe University" on the official website of China Trademark website, all of which were applied for registration between July 3rd and July 6th. In addition, a cultural development company in Anhui applied for registration of 4 different categories of trademarks, including international classifications such as beverages, beer, and catering and accommodation, and these trademark applications are all in a "waiting to be accepted" state.

▲ China Trademark Network shows that there are 9 trademark registration numbers for "Shanhe University"

Red Star News reporter called the China National Intellectual Property Administration's unified service telephone for foreign affairs, and the relevant staff said that as long as the true and accurate materials were submitted, the trademark registration application would be accepted. The Trademark Law stipulates that the application is not restricted, and anyone who has a trademark demand in production and business activities can submit an application. The application for the trademark of "Shanhe University" also needs to wait for the review department to review, and the final review results can be found on the official website.

Subsequently, a Red Star News reporter consulted a trademark registration agency as a consumer. The service personnel of the online trademark registration platform of China Software Group stated that in order to register the "Shanhe University" trademark, the first step is to examine the situation of the same name. "University" as a common term does not undergo a distinctiveness examination. However, if the word "Shanhe" already has a trademark with the same name, it cannot be applied for a trademark with the same name, and even if the application is rejected. Moreover, as a public organization, universities cannot apply for collective trademarks in the name of companies or individuals unless they apply for them themselves. If a company fails to apply for a trademark, the rejection record on the China Trademark Office will continue to exist, which will have a certain impact on the company's intellectual property layout. Moreover, continuous trial registration may lead the Trademark Office to believe that there is a rush to register or other issues.

At the same time, the service personnel also stated that the acceptance notice will be issued 15 days or one month after the general trademark registration application, which can indicate that the applied trademark has been accepted and the examination can begin next. According to Tianyancha, the trademark registration of "Shanhe University" was earliest on July 3rd and has not yet reached the stage of issuing acceptance notices.

As a virtual university

Can the trademark application for "Shanhe University" be successful?

Netizens have expressed dissatisfaction and doubts about companies that register trademarks. Can Shanhe University, as a virtual university, register its trademark? Can its trademark application be successful? Red Star News interviewed lawyers.

Chang Junhu, a lawyer for intellectual property at Beijing Enhe Law Firm, stated that "Shanhe University" does not have an exact right holder. The first step is to determine who has the right to "Shanhe University" in order to claim that someone else's registration of the "Shanhe University" trademark is a preemptive act. And the emergence of "Shanhe University" is a social hot topic phenomenon, and applying for this trademark by enterprises is a behavior of riding on the hot topic.

Lawyer Chang Junhu stated that the trademark name contains words such as country, province, or university, and enterprises or individuals cannot apply for it at will, and the review department of the Trademark Office will not approve it at will. On the one hand, the Trademark Office may believe that such trademarks may cause confusion among the relevant public, that is, the public may mistakenly believe that "Shanhe University" truly exists and has issued a university license for the use of the relevant name. On the other hand, the trademark may have adverse effects.

Lawyer Wang Hui from Jingshi Law Firm stated that if there is no such university as "Shanhe University" in reality, and there are no other businesses with the same trademark, such as product manufacturers and service providers using the "Shanhe University" trademark, then someone registering the "Shanhe University" trademark does not infringe on the rights of others; And under normal circumstances, the trademark "Shanhe University" can be successfully registered. Because trademarks cannot be used alone, they are often closely integrated with the services and products of the registrant.

"When the Trademark Office conducts trademark examination, it will consider whether the registration and subsequent use of the trademark can cause misunderstandings or have adverse social effects, depending on the scope of the trademark registration. Lawyer Wang Hui said that for example, relevant educational institutions or non university level institutions can apply for the" Shanhe University "trademark, which cannot be combined with the education services of universities. This type of trademark registration is impossible.".

As for netizens expressing dissatisfaction with the registration of "Shanhe University" by the company, Lawyer Wang Hui stated that this is a behavior that the registrant may have taken within the scope allowed by law, which may contradict some people's understanding. "Registering the trademark of 'Shanhe University' for enterprises does not infringe on the interests of others, and it still provides existing users with a space and platform for normal use. Netizens can still use the words' Shanhe University 'for online discussions."