01 Preface
As Chinese companies accelerate their global expansion, international intellectual property protection has shifted from optional to essential. Many enterprises have sold products overseas for years without registering trademarks or filing patents in target markets. Once hit by squatting or counterfeiting, they may be forced to rebrand, pay high license fees, or face goods seized by customs and markets completely blocked. Laying out global IP early is the first moat for exporters going overseas.
02 International Trademark: Advantages of the Madrid System
Under the Madrid System, an applicant files a single international application through their home trademark office and designates multiple contracting parties to obtain trademark protection in over 130 countries and regions, without engaging local agents country by country or resubmitting materials, greatly saving time and cost. Note that international registrations are based on the home basic registration; if the basic registration is canceled within five years, the international registration also fails, known as the central attack principle.
03 International Patents: The PCT Route
Under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), within 12 months of the first home filing, an applicant may file a single PCT application designating all member states, deferring entry into national phases to around 30 months. Enterprises can use this window to conduct market research, arrange funding and validate products before deciding which countries to enter, avoiding premature, costly national filings.
04 Responding to Overseas Trademark Squatting
Once a target-market trademark is found squatted, remedies include: filing an opposition during the publication period; seeking invalidation or cancellation of a granted registration on grounds of bad-faith squatting or well-known mark protection; negotiating assignment or coexistence; or pursuing local litigation when necessary. The key is to fix evidence of use, sales records and prior reputation immediately; the earlier the response, the lower the cost.
05 Practical IP Layout Advice for Exporters
Before entering a target market, file trademarks and core patents first to secure the priority date. Layer the layout by market importance: use Madrid/PCT for key markets and single-country registration for emerging markets. Set up overseas monitoring to regularly search for infringement and squatting. Register copyright and designs alongside core brands and technologies to build a three-dimensional protection system, so that losing one right does not mean total collapse.