Worldwide Trademark Registration
Trademark rights are territorial. For example, a U.S. trademark registration is generally enforceable against infringers only in the U.S. Therefore in order to protect one's mark in other countries, an applicant will need to file applications in each country of interest. Therefore, the cost of searching, filing and maintaining trademark registrations worldwide is very expensive.
Recently some countries have signed regional treaties to provide a "one-stop" trademark filing and registration system to protect trademark registrants against infringers in all the countries within the region. For example, many European countries have adopted the Community Trademark (CTM) whereby a CTM registration will allow the registrant to enforce its right in all of these European countries.
Another treaty allows foreign applications filed within six months of the filing of the U.S. application for the same mark to receive the same filing date as the U.S. application. This priority system is only available in the first six months and is a key tool in fighting trademark squatters in other countries.
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