TRADEMARK MONITORING (TRADEMARK WATCH) SERVICE

For companies operating in competitive markets, proactive protection of trademark rights is as important as obtaining the registration itself. Trademark monitoring or trademark watch is a preventive tool that allows rights holders to identify potentially conflicting trademark applications at an early stage and react within statutory deadlines.

Why you need trademark monitoring to protect your rights

Across many jurisdictions, trademark examination includes a review on relative grounds, yet even well-structured systems cannot eliminate the inherent subjectivity of similarity assessments. Examiners may overlook applications that create a likelihood of confusion, particularly when the similarity arises from stylization, conceptual meaning, or overall commercial impression rather than identical elements. For this reason, potentially conflicting trademarks can still move forward in the registration process without being flagged.

To mitigate these risks, rights holders should actively monitor newly filed applications and be prepared to act during the opposition period — the most effective and strategically important stage for preventing registration of conflicting trademarks. Below is a table summarizing the duration of the opposition period in various CIS jurisdictions.

Country	Opposition period
Armenia	2 months for national TM and 6 months for IR from the date of publication
Georgia	3 months from the date of publication
Kyrgyzstan	3 months from the date of publication
Kazakhstan	1 month from the date of publication
Moldova	3 months for national TM and 6 months for IR from the date of publication
Ukraine	3 months from the date of publication

There is no official opposition procedure in Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, or Tajikistan. However, any interested person may submit written observations with arguments against the registration of a trademark at any time during the examination stage, prior to a decision on registration being issued.

Trademark monitoring service helps to detect applications for marks containing identical or nearly identical verbal elements presented in a different graphic style.

Our trademark monitoring service

Our trademark watch service is based on advanced trademark monitoring software that systematically reviews newly published national applications and international registrations, while our attorneys provide a legal assessment of potential conflicts.

Each monitoring report includes:

• identification of potentially conflicting applications or registrations;
• legal analysis of similarity;
• information on applicants and right holders;
• goods/services, the indicated marks are filed / registered for.

Clients who file their trademark applications through our firm receive complimentary basic trademark monitoring, covering identical signs and signs with identical verbal elements.

For broader oversight, we offer advanced trademark monitoring, which allows companies to monitor trademark violations more comprehensively and maintain high-level control over developments in relevant market sectors.

Benefits of trademark watching service

Regular trademark watch services enable to:

• 
  Timely detection of conflicts

  Regular monitoring ensures prompt identification of conflicting trademark applications

• 
  Maintain brand distinctiveness

  Helps preserve the uniqueness and enforceability of your key brands

• 
  Reduce litigation risks

  May help lower the likelihood and costs of legal disputes

• 
  Strengthen IP risk management

  Supports internal processes to manage intellectual property risks effectively

• 
  Monitor competitors and market trends

  Maintain visibility over competitor activity and evolving market conditions

• 
  Save time and resources

  Automated monitoring reduces manual tracking, allowing your team to focus on core business activities

Incorporating trademark monitoring into your IP protection strategy ensures that enforcement actions can be taken promptly and that your trademarks retain their full legal and commercial value. Please contact us for any additional information or ordering sample of a watch report.

Key Questions & Answers: Trademark Monitoring Service

• Why is trademark monitoring essential if we already have a registered trademark? +
  Because registration alone does not prevent others from filing confusingly similar applications. Monitoring ensures you detect conflicts during the opposition period, when enforcement is fastest and least costly.
• What legal risks arise if we miss the opposition deadline? +
  The trademark may proceed to registration, leaving litigation as the only remedy. Court actions require significantly more time, evidence and budget than a timely opposition.
• Does the IP Office’s examination on relative grounds eliminate the need for monitoring? +
  No. Similarity assessments are subjective. Potentially conflicting filings regularly pass examination, and only monitoring reveals them early enough to act.

• Why is monitoring important for portfolios with well-known or highly distinctive marks? +
  Such marks attract imitation. Monitoring helps prevent dilution, maintain distinctiveness and preserve enhanced legal protection.
• How does monitoring support broader brand protection and compliance strategies? +
  It provides early alerts for enforcement actions, ensures consistent protection across product lines and markets, and strengthens internal risk-management and brand governance processes.
• Can monitoring replace a search if our goal is to minimize legal risk and costs? +
  No. A full search identifies previously filed or registered marks and reduces the risk of refusal or disputes. Monitoring helps to reveal the marks identical and/or similar to an already filed or registered mark. They are complementary tools at different stages.