According to the official notice, as of January 1, 2013, China Trademark Office (CTMO) will begin to accept trademark registration in respect of retail or wholesale services in Class 35. The acceptable service descriptions are limited as follows:
1.retail or wholesale services for pharmaceutical, veterinary and sanitary preparations and medical supplies;
2.retail or wholesale services for pharmaceuticals;
3.retail or wholesale services for pharmaceutical preparations;
4.retail or wholesale services for sanitary preparations;
5.retail or wholesale services for medical supplies;
6.retail or wholesale services for veterinary medicine;
7.retail or wholesale services for veterinary preparations.
The Notice provides that: 1) the above seven items are currently the only retail or wholesale service descriptions acceptable to the CTMO, while any other descriptions like the broader description “retail or wholesale services” or “retail or wholesale services” in other fields are still not acceptable. 2) these acceptable services will belong to a separate subclass and will not be considered similar to any of the existing services in Class 35 or any classes for goods.
China Trademark Office has set a transitional period from January 1 through 31, 2013. During this period all the applications filed on the above mentioned services shall be treated to have one same filing date. In case of conflict, the trademark prior used shall prevail, OR, in case of identical first use date or none has been used, conflict shall be resolved through negotiation between the parties, and if the parties cannot reach agreement, it shall be determined by drawing lots.
