UAE Law and Practice Contributed by: Maria Farrukh Khan, Fatima Shah, Heera Sandeep and Essam Abdel Khaleq, United Trademark & Patent Services
Longer use and more extensive advertising strength - en the case for secondary meaning. For prohibited marks, see 4.10 Refusal of Registration . 2.3 Trade Mark Rights Under the Trademark Law, trade mark owners have the following rights: • exclusive rights to use the mark for registered goods/services; • to stop third parties from using the same or con - fusingly similar marks without authorisation; • to grant licences to third parties; • to take action against infringements; and • to record the mark with customs to prevent the entry of counterfeit goods at the border. Rights persist throughout the mark’s term if the mark remains valid and is not cancelled. 2.4 Use in Commerce Evidence of use is not required for trade mark filing, maintenance or renewal in the UAE. Marks not used for five consecutive years are vulnerable to non-use cancellation by third parties. 2.5 Notices and Symbols The UAE trade mark symbols are as follows: • ® – registered trade marks only; • superscript TM – unregistered trade marks for goods; and • ℠ – unregistered service marks. The ® symbol may only be used after official registra - tion approval. Using ® for unregistered or pending marks is illegal. and ℠ may be used for unregistered marks or while registration is pending. Use of symbols is not mandatory but recommended to provide public notice and deter infringers. There are no consequences for failing to provide notice of trade mark ownership. 2.6 Related Rights Trade marks and copyright are distinct in the UAE. Copyright protects original creative works (books, software, graphics), while trade marks protect names,
logos and symbols under the Trademark Law. A trade mark logo may also receive copyright protection if it is an original artistic work, in addition to trade mark registration for brand identity protection. 3. Copyright Ownership, Protection and Rights 3.1 Types of Copyrightable Works Under the Copyright Law, protected works include: • literary works; • software, apps and databases; • oral, theatrical, musical and audiovisual works; • architecture, engineering drawings and sculptures • applied/plastic arts, photography and illustrations; • 3D works; • derivative works; • innovative titles; and • broadcasts. Excluded works include ideas, methods, procedures, mathematical concepts, official documents, purely informative news and public domain works. Industrial designs are governed by Federal Law No 11 of 2021. Copyright may apply if original artistic ele - ments are distinct from functional aspects. 3.2 Essential Elements of Copyright Protection Copyright protection requires: • creative expression in literature, arts or sciences (not ideas); • originality (author’s intellectual effort, not copied); • authorship (natural person or legal entity); • a perceivable form (document, recording, code, art); and • automaticity upon creation (registration optional). 3.3 Copyright Authorship The author is the person who creates a work, is named on it or is ascribed ownership unless proven otherwise (Article 1, the Copyright Law). Anonymous/pen-name works are represented by the publisher/producer until identified.
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