The plenary of the Chamber approved today (4) the text of the Madrid Protocol on the international registration of marks. The proposal, which is on the list of priorities of the Legislative Agenda for Industry, delivered this week to Congress, streamlines procedures and allows intellectual property to be recognized simultaneously in the various countries that are part of the agreement.
In practice, the measure reduces the cost of companies, which today have to pay for multiple trademark registration applications to operate in other countries. The costs involve payment of fees, hiring lawyers, among others.
If the proposal is also approved in the Senate, the National Institute of Intellectual Property (INPI) - will forward the trademark registration application to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), based in Geneva.
From then on, the registration process in the other member countries will be the responsibility of the central body.
Submitted to Congress in 2017, the Madrid Protocol has been in force since April 1996 and has been ratified by the world's largest economies, such as the United States, Japan, China, Russia and the European Union.
“There will be significant cost reductions, in some cases up to 90%”, said the proposal's rapporteur, deputy Marcos Pereira (PRB-SP).
Also according to the parliamentarian, who was Minister of Industry and Foreign Trade in the Temer government, the agreement also requires more agility in the trademark registration process in the country of origin. Applications for trademark registration must be processed at the INPI within 18 months.
“This treaty means that we will never return to the average of more than three years to register a trademark in Brazil. The protocol establishes that the process cannot take more than 18 months”, said the leader of Novo, deputy Marcel Van Hattem (RS).
Source: Karine Melo via Agência Brasil.