With China's economic development and the promotion of the "the Belt and Road" initiative, more and more enterprises have begun to go abroad to explore overseas markets. Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Indonesia, and other member countries of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), as close neighbors of China, have abundant natural and labor resources, huge market potential, and have become important destinations for Chinese enterprises to go global. In 2023, bilateral trade between China and ASEAN will continue to grow, with a scale of 6.41 trillion yuan. ASEAN has maintained its position as China's largest trading partner for four consecutive years, and China has also been ASEAN's largest trading partner for many consecutive years. Southeast Asian countries are important regions for Chinese companies to apply for trademarks overseas. According to data statistics from FOVEA IP (a large online database of intellectual property that provides services such as data collection, online search, and custom reports), the number of trademark applications filed by Chinese companies in Southeast Asia from 2021 to 2023 was 23215, 23538, and 29778, respectively, showing an increasing trend year by year. Among them, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia rank among the top in terms of application volume.

In the ASEAN market, Chinese enterprises face many challenges when going global, among which intellectual property disputes are particularly prominent. The business representative of Gaopeng Headquarters recently conducted an in-depth investigation of Vietnam, starting from the phenomenon of trademark registration in Southeast Asian countries and typical cases, summarizing the characteristics and reasons for trademark registration, and proposing countermeasures, hoping to inspire Chinese enterprises' trademark layout and rights protection work in Southeast Asia.

1、 The phenomenon of trademark registration being hijacked in ASEAN countries and its typical cases

Many trademarks of Chinese enterprises, especially those with certain influence, have been subject to trademark registration. For example, Luckin Coffee encountered trademark registration and failed rights protection in Thailand, which hindered its expansion in the Thai market. The Thai company also registered trademarks for brands such as Pinduoduo, Meixue Bingcheng, and JD.com. The Xiaopeng Motors trademark has also been illegally registered in India, Indonesia, and the Philippines, seriously damaging the interests of the company. Due to the fact that the "Guihua" trademark has not been registered in Vietnam, the "Guihua" brand agricultural walking tractors were exported and sold in ASEAN countries such as Vietnam, and the trademark was counterfeited, causing huge losses to the company. Due to the regional nature of trademark protection, companies that are well-known in the domestic market also need to register their trademarks in overseas markets to obtain local legal protection. During the inspection and interview conducted by Gaopeng General Office, it was learned that well-known Chinese electric motorcycle brands such as Yadea and Aima have encountered trademark registration in Vietnam, but the handling methods and timing are different, resulting in a huge difference in market share between the two companies in the local market. It can be seen that different strategic decisions made by enterprises when going global will have different results on their development layout. Enterprises can maximize their own interests through earlier layout and more professional and efficient response.

Let's take the Philippine trademark revocation case of a certain group company in Huzhou as a specific example to observe the process of Chinese enterprises encountering trademark registration in ASEAN countries. In 2015, a certain group company in Huzhou (hereinafter referred to as the company) submitted a trademark registration application to the Philippine Intellectual Property Office through a single country application. In February 2016, the company received a notice of trademark registration rejection from the Philippine Intellectual Property Office, stating that the trademark in question had already been registered by an individual in the Philippines. According to the relevant provisions of the Philippine Trademark Law, after the approval and registration of a trademark, if the prior rights holder or interested party believes that the registration is improper, they may apply for revocation based on prior rights and malicious registration. Based on this, the company submitted a trademark revocation application to the Philippine Intellectual Property Office and provided evidence of prior use of the company's involved trademark, including a certificate of well-known trademark in China, registration certificates of trademarks in other countries, sales contracts, and customs declarations. With the joint efforts of relevant departments, in June 2021, the Philippine Intellectual Property Office made a ruling in accordance with the law to revoke the registered trademark of an individual in the Philippines, and the registered trademark applied for by the individual in the Philippines officially became invalid. Thus, the company has resubmitted its trademark registration application to the Philippine Intellectual Property Office and successfully obtained the exclusive right to the trademark in question in October 2022, effectively safeguarding the company's legitimate rights and interests in the Philippine market.

Simply put, there are three main forms of trademark registration by Chinese companies in ASEAN. Firstly, from the perspective of the basic elements of trademarks, trademark registration in Southeast Asian countries presents certain characteristics. In terms of trademark identification, the most obvious form of unauthorized registration is complete plagiarism of the trademark identification of the rights holder, which can be described as simple and crude copying and pasting. The second most obvious form of unauthorized registration involves copying only a portion of the trademark of the rights holder, or combining it with other elements. Its purpose is to maintain a close relationship with the imitated object while also keeping a certain distance. Some fake registrations are even more covert, modifying the trademark identification of the rights holder to a certain extent and increasing the difference from the imitated object. Secondly, in terms of trademark designation, the most obvious form of preemptive registration is to designate goods and services of the same or similar category as the main business of the rights holder, or to fully include them. A more complex form of registration is to specify categories that are not the same or similar to the main business of the rights holder, but closely related. The most difficult part is to specify categories that are completely different, dissimilar, and unrelated to the main business of the rights holder. Thirdly, in terms of trademark applicants, the most common are dealers and agents who rush to register. This group of people use their professional advantages to learn about others' trademarks and apply for them in important trade target countries first. Another common type is the rush registration by industry operators. Although the registrant has no direct relationship with the rights holder, they belong to the same industry as the rights holder and therefore are aware of the rights holder's trademark. There are also some registrants who have no business dealings or other relationships with the rights holder, nor are they industry operators. After learning about the rights holder's trademark through other channels, they apply first.

2、 Analysis of the reasons why Chinese enterprises encounter trademark registration in ASEAN countries

One of the main reasons for trademark registration is that the brand value of the trademark is enormous, and the registrant can obtain huge profits. More than twenty years ago, it was not common for Chinese enterprise trademarks to be registered overseas, as Chinese brands that could enter the international market and have considerable popularity were not common. Chinese companies' brands have a very small share in global economic and trade, so international intellectual property disputes are also rare. However, in recent years, with the increasing number of well-known Chinese brands in the international market, intellectual property disputes have been escalating worldwide, and Chinese companies have gradually become victims of intellectual property infringement, especially trademark registration.

Secondly, more importantly, there is a lack and lag in the trademark layout of the rights holder. Domestic enterprises, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, going global is not a forward-looking strategic plan, but a short-term decision accompanied by business development and transformation. Therefore, trademark protection is often only considered after the product or business has already gone global, leaving a hidden danger of missing the "window period" of trademark protection and registering. In terms of the overall layout of the trademark, brand building is ahead of brand protection. Although we are vigorously expanding the market for promotion, our awareness of risk prevention is insufficient, leaving opportunities for malicious elements to take advantage of. Some companies, due to a lack of understanding of brand internationalization, limited financial strength, and unfamiliarity with international market rules, often fail to realize the importance of brand protection and neglect the international registration of trademarks. When it comes to expanding the market in a certain country, it is often discovered that the trademark has already been registered in another country.

Thirdly, the hijackers are very familiar with the Chinese market and are more sensitive to it. It is reported that the majority of the registrants are Chinese, mostly product distributors, competitors, and other intellectual property agencies with trademark registration experience, with the aim of blocking competitors' market share or seeking high profits through small gains. Among them, dealers often register trademarks in order to seek market monopoly and obtain high profits; Industry operators, on the other hand, use the reputation of others' trademarks to cause consumer misidentification and confusion, in order to seek illegitimate benefits; After maliciously registering someone else's well-known trademark, they attempt to seek several times the profit through litigation, demanding high transfer fees, and other means.

Fourthly, the regional characteristics of trademark rights and the differences in trademark recognition systems among different countries are also one of the reasons for trademark registration. Registering a trademark in China and being protected by Chinese law does not necessarily mean that it is also protected by law in other countries. If you want to obtain legal protection from other countries, you must obtain registration in the target country, which is the overseas registration of a trademark. In terms of trademark registration applications, some countries require applicants to have actual or intended use, while others do not have such requirements. For example, even for the same review principle, the review standards and implementation vary from country to country. Moreover, in addition to differences in substantive laws, countries around the world have different regulations regarding the procedures and follow-up procedures for trademark registration applications, as well as the requirements for litigation evidence. International trademark registration refers to the use of the regional characteristics of trademark rights to register Chinese enterprise trademarks in countries that have not been registered overseas.

Fifth, the frequent occurrence of trademark registration incidents is closely related to the development stage of the local legal system to a certain extent. The current legal system in many ASEAN countries needs further improvement, and the regulatory system is incomplete, resulting in overall insufficient protection of intellectual property rights. Taking Vietnam as an example, when encountering disputes and conflicts, they are usually handled vaguely through methods such as "acquaintances", "red envelopes", and personal favors, rather than standardized processing constrained by rules and systems. This also makes it very difficult for Chinese companies to carry out legal means to protect their rights in the local area. The work of safeguarding rights is prone to prolonged delays or unsatisfactory results, resulting in a significant increase in the time and economic costs of safeguarding rights, leading to a dilemma for enterprises.

3、 Do a good job in protecting trademarks for enterprises going abroad

In addition to the international registration of Madrid trademarks, in recent years, China has signed memorandums of understanding on trademark or intellectual property cooperation with Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Indonesia, Cambodia and other countries. According to the memorandums, China actively carries out exchanges in intellectual property examination, examiner training, quality control, automation and database construction, and also provides support for Chinese enterprises going abroad.

（1） Make trademark advance layout, precise layout, and appropriate defense

The state supports enterprises to use trademark brands to participate in international competition and guides them to prioritize trademarks in implementing the "going global" strategy. Enterprises should follow the principle of "trademark before market" to make a good overseas layout. The trademark layout must be as advanced as possible, and the product should initiate a trademark application before entering the market during the planning stage. Through Madrid trademark international registration and other channels, Chinese enterprises can strengthen their overseas trademark layout planning domestically. For countries with prior art applications, building a trademark layout for the international market in advance and registering trademarks in the planned market as early as possible is the most effective way to deal with trademark registration by enterprises. Once a company has registered a trademark in advance, the registration behavior of the registrant will fail due to "conflict with prior rights". For countries that use prior art, the risk of trademark registration is relatively low, and enterprises should file trademark registration as early as possible after the trademark is put into use, and retain evidence of use during the trademark use process. For countries with mixed ownership systems, it is not only necessary to pay attention to the use of trademarks and the preservation of evidence of use, but also to initiate registration as early as possible and make preparations for both.

In contrast, Madrid trademark registration is a relatively simple way of trademark registration, which can effectively reduce the time and cost of enterprise trademark registration. However, there are also certain risks in the Madrid trademark registration system. If the trademark used as the base application is rejected in the base application country, it may lead to the overall invalidation of the trademark within the Madrid registration system. Some countries that have joined the Madrid Agreement have proposed detailed regulations that are inconsistent with the agreement, which requires companies to be more meticulous when conducting market and legal research. Each enterprise strives to strengthen its understanding of domestic and foreign trademark laws. On the one hand, it uses the trademark registration systems or international treaties of various countries to register trademarks as soon as possible, strengthens the supervision of trademark registration behavior in various countries, and timely protects the rights and interests of enterprises in trademark registration and overseas markets. On the other hand, considering the economic and time costs, based on the product's sales scope, sales strategy, geographical location, etc., choose overseas markets that may be expanded in the future for trademark registration. In addition, avoid excessive protection by enterprises. The application and maintenance of trademarks require a significant amount of time and economic costs for enterprises. There is no need for excessive or radical protection, as the development strategy of enterprises is guided by moderate protection.

（2） Evidence of trademark retention for overseas use

To prevent the use of unregistered trademarks, while also avoiding the situation of registered but unused trademarks. Similar to China, ASEAN countries can apply for the revocation of a trademark if it has not been used for a certain period of time after registration. To avoid trademark revocation by competitors and industry peers, companies should consciously collect evidence of use in order to protect their rights in the future. Attention should be paid to aligning the actual use and promotion of the logo with the registration application logo as much as possible. In terms of designated categories and goods and services, in addition to covering the main business areas, the scope of protection should also be appropriately expanded. By expanding brand awareness and influence through practical use and promotion, it ensures that the trademark has a stable factual basis for legal protection in ASEAN countries.

（3） Carry out daily supervision of trademarks

Compared to post event rights protection, pre objection has a higher probability of success, lower cost, shorter time, and less impact on the international business of enterprises. Enterprises can utilize high-quality domestic agencies, data software, and other resources to monitor applications for similar trademarks. Internationally, various countries have established an opposition period system for trademark review. Therefore, enterprises should make good use of this system and file a request to block the application during the opposition period. Once similar trademarks are found, legal measures should be taken in a timely manner. The case of "Yanghe" trademark being registered by Thailand is a typical case of raising objections during the opposition period to regain trademark rights. In addition, enterprises should actively play the role of distributors in maintaining their brand. In addition to constraining and regulating distributor behavior through management systems and cooperation agreements, enterprises can actively play the role of distributors in the field of trademark rights protection. Distributors are generally on the front line of sales and are more likely to detect trademark infringement. If they can timely detect infringement, provide intelligence, and implement measures to combat infringement, it will be beneficial for rights holders to carry out their work.

4、 Conclusion

The protection of intellectual property rights is a crucial issue that Chinese enterprises must pay attention to when going global. Enterprises need to raise awareness of intellectual property protection, strengthen cooperation with professional legal institutions, and actively respond to potential intellectual property disputes. After the trademark is registered, it is actively filed in relevant countries and regions by sending warning letters, and disputes are resolved through comprehensive means such as negotiation transfer, premium purchase, trademark opposition, invalidation declaration, and judicial litigation.

In addition to trademark protection, enterprises also need to take measures to prevent risks such as patents, trade secrets, employment risks, and corporate compliance when going abroad. Due to space limitations, we will discuss other rights protection measures in a separate chapter later. I believe that through professional and comprehensive risk prevention measures, Chinese enterprises will be able to better develop steadily in overseas markets