Cambodia is fast becoming a major investment destination for businesses, and with that, many businesses have filed for protection of their brands via trademark applications.
Kenfox IP & Law Office, with nearly 20 years of expertise in intellectual property solutions, has recently won the right to protect the world-renowned milk tea brand ‘Ding Tea’ in Cambodia after an earlier refusal by the authorities to register the trademark in the country.
Taiwanese milk tea brand ‘Ding Tea’ boasts of more than 350 outlets across Asia and a total of 650 branches worldwide. However, the trademark ‘Ding Tea’ faced a setback when the owner, Chu Yu Hsiang Co., Ltd, applied to register it and was refused by the Department of Intellectual Property of Cambodia. The reason cited was the mark’s potential confusion with another registered mark ‘Din Tai Fung’, belonging to another major food services player in the region.
Apparently, the examiner considers the word having a similar pronounciation which might confuse consumers. It is true that trademarks ‘Ding Tea’ and ‘Din Tai’ shared some similarities, but not enough to cause confusion. As a result, Kenfox IP & Law Office helped to appeal against the department decision.
Kenfox IP and Law Office has offered highly valuable evidence to showcase the uniqueness of both trademarks. For instance, the trademarks ‘Ding Tea’ and ‘Din Tai Fung’ in Chinese characters have been safeguarded in several countries such as Australia, Brunei, Canada, the European Union, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, and the US. This is to proof that the 2 trademarks are distinctive and coexist independently in many countries. This evidence has significantly bolstered the arguments in favour of Ding Tea.
After reviewing the case, the Department of Intellectual Property of Cambodia has overturned its decision to refuse the trademark and granted protection for the ‘Ding Tea’ brand in Cambodia.
Trademark registration plays a crucial role in conducting business activities in Cambodia, as such a business is advised to conduct a trademark search in advance before filing a trademark application in Cambodia.
