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Buon Ma Thuot brand: Dak Lak still wavering between suing and negotiating
The Dak Lak provincial authorities still have not made a final decision on whether to take legal proceedings to reclaim the Buon Ma Thuot geographical indication, or demand the brand back through the diplomatic channel.
Trinh Duc Minh, Deputy Director of the Dak Lak provincial Department for Science and Technology, on September 15, told Saigon Tiep Thi’s reporter that the department will represent the local authorities to work out with the National Office for Intellectual Property (NOIP) on the Buon Ma Thuot coffee brand case.
The meeting is expected to be held this week, where the officials will discuss on whether to sue the Chinese company which has registered Buon Ma Thuot coffee as its exclusive trademark.
According to Minh, the local authorities and coffee enterprises all have expressed their determination to demand the brand back. However, some of them have suggested reclaiming the geographical indication through the diplomatic channels. They said it would be better to ask for the help from the Vietnamese Embassy in China, or NOIP would work out with its counterpart agency in China and as for the agency intervention in the case.
“We know that it is nearly impossible to demand the brand back through the diplomatic channel. But we still need to think about the possibility of taking legal proceedings, since we still do not know about the possible expenses,” Minh said.
Also according to Minh, it is also necessary to check the authenticity of the information that a Chinese company has registered Buon Ma Thuot coffee as its exclusive trademark. It may happen that this is just “virtual information” which may lead to an insignificant lawsuit.
Meanwhile, Lawyer Le Quang Vinh, said on Saigon Tiep Thi that Buon Ma Thuot geographical indication which is protected in Vietnam, has been registered as the exclusive trademark in China by a Chinese company - Guangzhou Buon Ma Thuot Coffee Co., Ltd.
Vinh said that he has also found out that a French company ITM ENTREPRISES (Société Anonyme) has registered Dak Lak as its exclusive trademark.
The lawyer stressed that these are serious problems because both Buon Ma Thuot and Dak Lak are Vietnamese geographical indications and they are the assets of Vietnam. The fact that foreign individuals or businesses announce the ownership for the geographical indications means that the assets of the Vietnamese state have fallen into the hands of others.
The risk of Vietnamese coffee products being prevented from entering other countries has appeared before Vietnamese businesses’ eyes. In the long term, if the valuable geographical indications cannot be protected, the customers’ confidence on Vietnamese coffee may decrease dramatically, because they cannot tell the difference between the real Buon Ma Thuot coffee and counterfeit products.
Vinh went on to say that the trademark laws valid in the countries in the world have similar basic provisions. Therefore, Vinh and his colleagues believe that Vietnam still has the opportunities to conduct legal actions to annul the validity of the Dak Lak trademark registered in France.
Vinh also said that he can see the high possibility of gaining success for Vietnam in case the Dak Lak provincial authorities lodge a complain, asking the Chinese competent agencies to abrogate the Buon Ma Thuot trademark registered by the Chinese company.
The information that the famous Buon Ma Thuot coffee brand has been “stolen” by a Chinese company has stirred up the public. A lot of people have urged Dak Lak provincial authorities to take legal proceedings to demand the brand back. A lot of lawyers and law firms have given advices to the Dak Lak authorities and the Vietnam Cocoa and Coffee Association on how to deal with the case. They have also expressed their readiness to cooperate with relevant ministries and branches to represent Vietnam in case a lawsuit is raised.
vietnamnet, SGTT
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