On 22 July 2009 the European Commission published an Invitation to tender for a Study on the Overall Functioning of the Trade Mark System in Europe. On 16 October 2009 the European Commission has awarded the contract for the Study to the Max Planck Institute. The contract was signed in November 2009. The Study has to be performed within 12 months from the date of signature and is carried out by a team under the direction of Prof. Reto Hilty, Dr. Roland Knaak and Prof. Annette Kur.

This website is to inform stakeholders and the interested public about the activities undertaken in the course of the Study, and to provide a platform for input and observations.

Subject matter of the Study are the questions raised by the Commission in the above-mentioned call for tender. Proceeding from this mandate the Institute has developed a work program that focuses, as the first part of the study, on investigating the views of the relevant stakeholders on the European Trade Mark system and collecting information from the National Trade Mark Offices.

First, the trade mark user organisations were invited to present their views on the questions in the Commission's tender. By mid-March the Institute has received statements from the following associations: AIM, APRAM, BUSINESSEUROPE, COAPI, ECTA, EFPIA, FICPI, INTA, ITMA, LESI, MARQUES, ORIGEN ESPANA, VFA. On the basis of these contributions the Institute has scheduled a workshop with representatives of these associations on 22 April 2010.

In addition, a representative survey among users of the Community Trade Mark System is being conducted by the "Institut für Demoskopie Allensbach" In cooperation with the Institute Allensbach has drafted a questionnaire that reflects the topics addressed in the call for tender. At the beginning of January, the user organisations as well as OHIM were asked to comment on the questionnaire. The adapted version was tested in a pre-test in January and February. The survey itself is running since 8 February.

Apart from that, the Institute has contacted the National Trade Mark Offices in order to obtain information in particular on their structures, tasks, workflows, registration practices and cooperation with users and other Trade Mark Offices including OHIM. For now, more than ten offices have been visited and interviewed by members of the Study team. As a basis for these interviews served a questionnaire which has been drafted by the Institute. National Offices which will not be visited have been invited per email to answer the questionnaire. This part of the Study is to be completed by mid-April.

We welcome any comments on questions raised on pages 20 to 28 of the above mentioned invitation to tender, and we are likewise interested in any other proposals or statements of relevance for the Study. Please send your contributions by email. Click here for contact.