Trademark owners urged to register with National Intellectual Property Office

Muscat: The Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion (MoCIIP) has urged the owners of trademarks to register them with the National Intellectual Property Office. The ministry stressed that the trademark has a market value that rises through the quality of its products, be it goods or services.

MoCIIP clarified that the marketing efforts made by the trademark owner to create a reputation for the trademark, will result in promoting it. The strengthening of its reputation depends on the consumer's recognition of the trademark, the duration, extent of its registration, the number of countries that have registered the trademark, the value of the trademark and the extent to which this value contributes to the promotion of the products on which it is being used.

 The ministry pointed out that the number of trademark applications filed with the National Intellectual Property Office from the beginning of January till the end of July 2021, reached 6,315 applications.

 Asia bint Ismail Al-Ajmiya, a trademark researcher at the MoCIIP stated “All owners of trademarks are requested to register their trademarks in the National Intellectual Property Office, to ensure that others do not register the same.”

Al Ajamiya added: “Intellectual property is defined as a set of rights that protect human thought and creativity. It includes industrial rights, patents, trademarks, industrial models, moral rights, copyright and related rights. Intellectual property is also a right for every human being who has an idea to own it and document it in all areas of intellectual property”.

 She emphasised that attention must be paid to raising the level of awareness and knowledge of the importance of intellectual property internally and externally, and to continue the development of performance by investing in all available advanced technologies.

 Legally, the intellectual property is concerned with protecting inventors from any infringement of their ownership without prior permission, and provides product protection against theft, copying and counterfeiting.

"Economically, the trademarks are a means of guaranteeing the product and the consumer, as they prevent the mixing of products bearing a certain mark. It allows inventors to utilise their business and investment, while the trademark also contributes to enhancing the competitiveness of the national economy," she added.

 Socially, the intellectual property preserves money, encourages creativity and innovation, and creates a spirit of competition among trademark owners. Asia concluded.