RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONIP/C/W/117/Add.20
16 October 2000
(00-4265)
Council for Trade-Related Aspects
of Intellectual Property RightsOriginal:  English
REVIEW UNDER ARTICLE 24.2 OF THE APPLICATION OF THE
PROVISIONS OF THE SECTION OF THE TRIPS AGREEMENT
ON GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
Checklist of Questions1
Responses from Korea
Addendum
The present document represents the responses to the Checklist which the Secretariat has
received from the Republic of Korea, by means of a communication from its Permanent Mission,
dated 21 September 2000.
_______________
I. RESPONSES TO THE QUESTIONS IN DOCUMENT IP/C/13
A. GENERAL
1. Is protection for geographical indications provided through unfair competition law, e.g.,
passing off, false designation of origin;  through a formal procedure for notification/registration
before protection is available;  or through both? Does the recognition of a geographical indication
require registration?
Korea provides protection for geographical indications through both the measures mentioned
above.
(i) In general, geographical indications are protected through the Unfair Competition Prevention
and Trade Secret Protection Act, the Fair Labelling and Advertising Act, Trademark Act, andseveral other laws and regulations.  Protection under these laws does not require any
procedures for notification/registration.
(a) Unfair Competition Prevention and Trade Secret Protection Act
Articles 2(1)(iii) and (iv) of the Unfair Competition Prevention and Trade Secret Protection
Act provide that the following acts fall into  the ambit of the unfair competition acts:
- an act of causing confusion with another person's commercial facilities or activities
by using marks identical with or similar to another person's name, trade name,emblem or any other mark which is widely known in Korea;
                                                     
1 Documents IP/C/13 and IP/C/13/Add.1.IP/C/W/117/Add.20
Page 2
- an act of making a mark on goods, advertisements, trade documents communicated to
the public or in communications, or selling, distributing, importing or exporting
goods marked with such mark which would mi slead the public into believing that the
place of production, manufacturing or proces sing is different from the actual place of
production, manufacturing or processing.
(b) Fair Labelling and Advertising Act
The Fair Labelling and Advertising Act enacted in July 1999 and enforced by the Korean Fair
Trade Commission is not pursuant to the TRIPS Agreement.  Nevertheless, it can indirectly have an
effect of protecting geographical indications.
- Rather than to guarantee the protection of intellectual property rights (IPRs), the
purpose of this Act is to prevent unfair labelling and advertising that may deceive or
mislead consumers and to facilitate the provision of fair and useful information to
consumers, thereby establishing a fair trade order and protecting consumers (Article 1
of the Fair Labelling and Advertising Act).
- However, geographical indications can be indirectly protected in the process of
regulating undue geographical indications to protect consumers.
- Relevant Provisions:
"Article 3 - Prohibition of Unfair Labelling and Advertising
(1) Enterprises, etc. shall not post labels or advertisements as set forth in the 
following subparagraphs that may deceive or mislead consumers, thus impairing fair trade order, nor shall they force other enterprises to do so:
1. false or exaggerating labelling and advertising;2. deceptive labelling and advertising;3. unduly comparative labelling and advertising;4. slanderous labelling and advertising."
- Notification on Types of and Criteria for Undue Labelling and Advertising.
• Pursuant to the Fair Labelling and Advertising Act and its Enforcement Decree, the
KFTC issued the notification specifying the types of and criteria for undue labellingand advertising.
• Paragraph 10, Article II:  In labelling or advertising the origin and manufacturer of
the products supplied, any vague or false labelling and advertising that may mislead
consumers shall be deemed as undue labelling and advertising.IP/C/W/117/Add.20
Page 3
(c) Trademark Act
When any trademark consists of or contains a geographical name, it may be rejected or
invalidated, under one of these provisions:
- Article 6(1)(iv) of the Trademark Act aims to prevent any conspicuous geographical
name from being registered as a trademark, the reason being that such a name lacks
the distinctiveness needed to be registered as a trademark, and it would be
unreasonable to grant an exclusive right to a specific person, which would result in
giving an unexpected disadvantage to his competitors;
- even when a geographical name is not conspicuous, the registration of a trademark
may be refused or invalidated under Article 6(1)(iii) of the Act if the trademark solely
consists of such a geographical name;  and, finally,
- even if a trademark does not consist solely of a conspicuous geographical name, it
may be rejected or invalidated under Article 7(1)(xi) if it is liable to mislead ordeceive consumers as to the quality of the goods.
(ii) The geographical indications of agricultural and fisheries products and their processed
products are protected through formal registration procedures according to the Agro-Fisheries
Product Quality Management Act(1999).  Protection under the Act requires recognition andregistration, by the National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service, of the
geographical indications of agricultural and fisheries products and their processed products.
(iii) The strengthened protection of geographical indications for wines and spirits is provided in
the Notice Concerning Liquor Labelling and the Trademark Act.
- Additional protection as provided for in Article 23 of the TRIPS Agreement is
provided to wines and spirits in the Notice Concerning Liquor Labelling, an
amendment to which took effect 14 June 2000.  According to the amended Notice,
even where the true origin of the goods is indicated or a geographical indication is
used in translation or is accompanied by expressions such as "kind", "type", "style",
"imitation" or the like, the use of the geographical indication identifying wines orspirits that do not originate in the place indicated by the geographical indication is
prohibited.
- An application for the registration of any trademark that contains or consists of the
geographical indications of wines or spirits that originate in any WTO Member is tobe rejected under Article 7(1)(xiv) of the Trademark Act.
2. Is there one single regime of protection of geographical indications for all products? If not,
identify the different regimes.
As indicated in the response to question 1 above, Korea protects geographical indications
through a number of regimes.
3. Do(es) the regime(s) of protection of geographical indications also extend to services?
The protection of geographical indications through the relevant provisions of the Trademark
Act and the Unfair Competition Prevention and Trade Secret Protection Act is also extended to
services.IP/C/W/117/Add.20
Page 4
4. What provisions of law or regulations are directed to the recognition of geographical
indications required by Articles 22.2 and 23.1 of th e TRIPS Agreement? Citations to laws should be
provided and, if the texts of the laws have not been notified to the WTO, copies should be provided
pursuant to Article 63.2.
Articles 2(1)(iii) and 2(1)(iv) of the Unfair Competition Prevention and Trade Secret
Protection Act, Article 3 of the Fair Labelling and Advertising Act, and Article 9 of the
Agro-Fisheries Product Quality Management Act provide the legal means for protecting geographical
indications as required by Article 22.2 of the TRIPS Agreement.  The text of the said laws were duly
notified to the WTO pursuant to Article 63.2 of the TRIPS Agreement.
The strengthened protection of geographical indications for wines and spirits, as required by
Article 23.1 of the TRIPS Agreement, is provided by the Amendment to the Notice ConcerningLiquor Labelling.
5. If the required recognition of geographical indications is not provided through statutes or
regulations, please explain, in detail, the mechanism or mechanisms through which the protection
required is provided.
See the responses to questions 1-4 above.
6. Please provide a few examples of domestic geographical indications protected in accordance
with the means discussed above and indicate the means by which such protection is provided.
Until now, there have been no cases of registered geographical indications.
One should apply for registration to obtain protection for geographical indications according
to the Agro-Fisheries Product Quality Management Act.  If the Geographical Indication Registration
Council decides that an application meets the criteria set by the Act, the geographical indication isregistered, and the registration of false or similar geographical indications of a registered geographical
indication is prohibited.
7. Is the higher level of protection required for wines and spirits under Article 23.2 of the TRIPS
Agreement provided for any other product? If so, please specify such products and the law underwhich they are protected.
The higher level of protection for wines and spirits required by Article 23.2 of the TRIPS
Agreement is available under Articles 6(1)(iii), 6(1)(iv) and 7(1)(xiv) of the Trademark Act.  Article 6
applies to all goods, while Article 7 applies only to wines and spirits.
B. 
DEFINITION AND CRITERIA FOR RECOGNITION
8. How are geographical indications defined?
The responses to questions 8-11 focus on the protection of geographical indications of
agricultural and fisheries products and their processed products through formal registration procedures
according to the Agro-Fisheries Product Quality Management Act.
The only definition of "geographical indication" is found in the Agro-Fisheries Product
Quality Management Act.  According to Article 2(5) of the Agro-Fisheries Product Quality
Management Act, a geographical indication means the geographical name of a specified region, which
serves to designate a product or a processed product originating therein, the reputation, quality and
characteristics of which are essentially attributable to the geographical origin.IP/C/W/117/Add.20
Page 5
9. Would such a definition comprise geographical indications identifying products of a certain
quality or reputation which are indirectly linked to a specific region?
The definition in the response to question 8 above requires that the quality or reputation of
products with geographical indications be linked directly to the geographical origin.
Article 15 of the Enforcement Decree of the Agro-Fisheries Product Quality Management Act
stipulates that one of the criteria for determining whether a geographical indication is recognized is
whether the reputation, quality, and other special characteristics of the product concerned can be
attributed to the environmental and human factors from the geographical area concerned.
10. In determining whether recognition should be given to a geographical indication, what
criteria are considered?
In Article 15 of the Enforcement Decree of the Agro-Fisheries Product Quality Management
Act, the following criteria are provided for determining whether a geographical indication is
recognized:
(i) whether the superior quality of the product concerned is widely recognized both
within Korea or abroad;
(ii) whether the quality of the product is of the highest grade as determined in accordance
with the standards specified under Article 4 of the Agro-Fisheries Product Quality
Management Act.  However, in the case where such standards are not specified under
the Act for the product concerned, then the required standard shall be that of the
highest grade as given under other laws and regulations, or that of the highest grade
as determined through customary use in the respective industry;
(iii) whether the reputation, quality, and other special characteristics of the product
concerned can be attributed to the environmental and human factors from the specific
geographic area;
(iv) whether the product concerned is produced or processed within the defined area;  and
(v) other standards that are deemed necessary by the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry
and the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, in regard to geographical
indications.
11. Is there any human creativity involved in the making of specific products under protection by
the system of geographical indications? If so, how much? And do these products involve any human
factors?
Human creativity constitutes human factors, a nd thereby may be taken into account in the
procedure for the recognition of geographical indications (see the response to question 10 above).
12. Are there any other intellectual property rights involved, such as patents for example?
No other intellectual property rights are involved.IP/C/W/117/Add.20
Page 6
13. What authority, if any, may define the geographic region or area for which rights are claimed
and on what basis is such definition made?
For agricultural and fisheries products and their processed products, if one applies for the
registration of a geographical indication on the basis of his/her own definition of geographical regionor area, the National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service and the Geographical
Indication Registration Council then establish the official definition of the geographical region or area
in the course of examining the application.
Regarding the basis of such a definition, see the response to question 9 above.
14. Does your legislation contain criteria for homonymous geographical indications for wines?
Under the Examination Guideline for Article 7(1) (xiv) of the Trademark Act, the registration
of any trademark with a homonymous geographical indication for wines may be rejected and, if
registered, invalidated.  Whether any trademark contains or consists of a homonymous geographical
indication will be determined subject to specific elements including its translation and the relationship
between the trademark and designated goods.
15. Does your national legislation provide for recognition and protection of geographical
indications or appellations of origin of foreign countries?
There is no provision related to the recognition of foreign geographical indications.
16. Is there any specific prohibition in the legislation/regulations/rules/procedures covering
geographical indications not protected in the country of origin? If so, please specify the relevant
statutory provision.
There are no statutory provisions related to geographical indications not protected in the
country of origin.  However, the Examination Guideline for Article 7(1)(xiv) of the Trademark Actstipulates that this Article does not apply to geographical indications which are not or cease to be
protected in their country of origin, or which have fallen into disuse in that country.
C. 
PROCEDURE FOR RECOGNITION*
17. With respect to any formal system for reco gnition of geographical indications, must the
applicant be a governmental organization or can a private entity own the rights to a geographicalindication?
Only producers' organizations or corporate processors are eligible for applications for the
registration of geographical indications.  If there exists only one producer or processor of a product,
however, this restriction may not be applied.
18. What are the competent authorities where the protection of a geographical indication can be
obtained?
The National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service and the Geographical
Indication Registration Council are the competent authorities.
                                                     
* It is to be noted that C (procedure for recognition) and D(maintenance) are applied only to
agricultural and fisheries products and their processed products.IP/C/W/117/Add.20
Page 7
19. Do the procedures which lead to the recognition of a geographical indication take place ex
officio or must they be based on the initiative of an entity or person?
The procedures must be based on the initiative of an entity or person.
20. What, if any, fees are involved in the application and maintenance of rights in a geographical
indication?
A fee of W 100,000 is required per application.
21. If criteria must be set in an application for recognition of a geographical indication, are
those criteria purely geographic in nature?
The criteria also include human factors.
22. What other criteria, if any, must be set out in an application for recognition of a geographical
indication?
See the responses to questions 10 and 21 above.
23. What information must be supplied in any application for rights in a geographical indication?
The name of a geographical indication, the regional range of a geographical indication, an
explanatory note on the relationship between qualitative characteristics and geographical factors, an
explanatory note on qualitative characteristics, data to prove the reputation of the product, a
production schedule, self-imposed quality criteria and a quality control schedule.
24. Must the goods and services with respect to which a geographical indication is claimed be set
out?
The goods for which a geographical indication is claimed should be set out at the time of
application for registration.
25. What mechanisms are provided to oppose the recognition of a geographical indication? How
is an investigation conducted after such a complaint?
When an application for the registration of a geographical indication is recognized, it should
be announced on the official gazette by the authorities concerned.  The procedure for an objection
against the recognition with the National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service isavailable to anyone within 30 days from the date of the announcement.  In doing so, he or she should
provide in writing the reasons for the obje ction and submit adequate evidence therewith.
When an objection is received, the National Agricultural Products Quality Management
Service should examine it in consideration of the judgement by the Geographical Indication
Registration Council.  The National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service should eitherregister the geographical indication applied for, if it is judged that there is no justifiable reason for
rejection, or notify the applicant of its inadequacy, if judged otherwise.
26. Who can oppose the recognition of a geographical indication?
See the response to question 25 above.IP/C/W/117/Add.20
Page 8
27. If your national legislation provides for recognition and protection of geographical
indications or appellations of origin of foreign countries, what is the procedure that has to be
followed in order to obtain such recognition and consequent protection?
Foreign geographical indications are also protected domestically under the general
WTO/TRIPS obligations.  The Agro-Fisheries Product Quality Management Act does not contain any
special provisions concerning the registration of foreign geographical indications.
D. MAINTENANCE*
28. How long does the recognition for a geographical indication continue?
Indefinitely.
29. If recognition of a geographical indication mu st be renewed or reaffirmed, what information
must be provided in order to effect such a renewal or reaffirmation?  Specify any fees involved in
renewal or reaffirmation.
Renewal procedures for geographical indications do not exist.
30. Must a geographical indication be used in order to maintain rights? If so, how is such use
determined?
The National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service monitors registered
products ex post facto  and may take necessary actions including the cancellation of the certification
and registration, if it is judged that such products have failed to satisfy relevant standards or that their
production is no longer possible because of the cessation of business.
31. Is  there a specified limit for non-use before rights in a geographical indication cease and, if
so, what is that limit?
See the response to question 30.
32. Who monitors the use of geographical indications to determine if the criteria identified in the
application continue to be met?
The National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service.
33. If a government entity is responsible for monitoring the use of geographical indications, what
are its procedures for doing so?
The National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service may instruct government
officials to review the appropriateness of the products with geographical indications in terms of
standard, quality, certification or registration, to ensure consumer protection and to maintain the
quality of the geographically specified products.  It may also take necessary actions including thecancellation of the registration, based upon the results of the investigation.
                                                     
* It is to be noted that C (procedure for recognition) and D(maintenance) are applied only to
agricultural and fisheries products and their processed products.IP/C/W/117/Add.20
Page 9
34. Are there means by which interested parties may request termination of a geographical
indication based on non-use or failure to maintain the criteria identified in the application?  Describe
the procedure.
Interested parties of a specific registered geographical indication may submit to the National
Agricultural Products Quality Management Service an adequate evidence to prove the geographical
indication's non-use or failure to maintain the criteria identified in the application.
35. Do the procedures which lead to forfeiture of a geographical indication take place ex officio
or must they be based on the initiative of an entity or person?
The National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service may conduct monitoring
either ex officio or in response to the request of the interested parties.
E. SCOPE OF RIGHTS AND USE
36. May anyone who meets the criteria submitted to obtain recognition of a geographical
indication use that geographical indication after recognition is given or must additional criteria orprocedures be followed by that party before use is permitted?
The criteria submitted to obtain the recognition of a geographical indication apply to the
submitting applicant.  Other persons or entities who meet the criteria may use that geographical
indication by joining that party.
37. Who makes the determination regarding use of a geographical indication by particular
parties, the entity responsible for the recognition or the entity that obtained the recognition?
Persons or entities who want to use a specific geographical indication may use it after
applying for registration and obtaining recognition in accordance with relevant laws and regulations.
38. Are there fees involved in receiving authorization to use a particular geographical indication
and, if so, what are those fees and how are they established?
No fees are required to obtain authorization under the Agro-Fisheries Product Quality
Management Act.
39. If there is a dispute regarding use of a geographical indication by a particular party, what
procedures are followed to resolve it?
This kind of dispute may be settled by general dispute settlement procedures.
40. Must individual authorized users of a geographical indication use that geographical
indication continually to retain their right to use it and, if so, how is their use determined and how
long will disuse be permitted?
See the response to question 30 above.
41. If there is a dispute over continuity of use by a particular party, how is it resolved?
This kind of dispute may be settled by general dispute settlement procedures.IP/C/W/117/Add.20
Page 10
42. Does the regime for protection of geographical indications allow geographical indications to
be licensed and, if so, what conditions are imposed on such licences? If such conditions are not met,
what is the effect on the geographical indication?
The Agro-Fisheries Product Quality Management Act does not contain any special provisions
concerning the licence of a geographical indication.
43. How is "grandfathered use" of a geographical indication, under Article 24.4. of the TRIPS
Agreement, applied in your country?
There is no provision regarding "grandfathered use".
F. RELATIONSHIP TO TRADEMARKS
44. What steps are taken to ensure that, in recognizing a geographical indication, the obligations
of Article 16.1 of the TRIPS Agreement are not nullified and impaired?
Since a geographical indication cannot be registered as a trademark under relevant provisions
of the Trademark Act, there is no possibility of conflict between Article 16.1 of the TRIPS Agreement
and geographical indications.  In this perspective, there is no relevant provision addressing the
correlation between geographical indications and the obligation in Article 16.1 of the Trademark Act.
45. What steps are taken to ensure that, in recognizing a geographical indication, the obligations
of Article 16.2 and 16.3 of the TRIPS Agreement are not nullified and impaired?
See the response to question 44 above.
46. What procedures are foreseen in case of a conflict of a geographical indication with a
trademark?
Where a trademark falls under Article 6(1)(iii), 6(1)(iv), 7(1)(xiv) of the Trademark Act in
relation to a geographical indication, the application shall be refused by an examiner, or the
registration shall be cancelled or invalidated upon request by any interested parties (see above).
G. ENFORCEMENT
47. How are rights in the geographical indication enforced? Are provisions available under
unfair competition law? Trademark law? Other laws? Provide citations to the laws and, if they have
not been notified under Article 63.2 of the TRIPS Agreement, please provide copies.
- Pursuant to Articles 4 and 5 of the Unfair Competition Prevention and Trade Secret
Protection Act, a person whose business interests are infringed or threatened by an act of
causing confusion, i.e. falsely marking the source of origin on the goods, or selling,
distributing, importing or exporting the goods marked with such a source of origin, is entitled
to seek a court injunction or preventive order against a person who engages in the act of
unfair competition.  Additionally, he or she may demand the destruction of the goods whichwere involved in the aforementioned act of unfair competition, removal of facilities used
during such act, or other measures necessary to prohibit or prevent such act.  In case a
person's business interests are infringed intentionally or negligently, he or she may seek
compensation for damages in a civil suit.IP/C/W/117/Add.20
Page 11
- The Agro-Fisheries Product Quality Management Act stipulates that anyone who attaches a
false or similar mark of a registered geographical indication on agricultural or fisheries
products or their processed products shall be sentenced to imprisonment for up to three years
or a fine not exceeding W 30 million.
- The Fair Labelling and Advertising Act stipulates the following:
"Article 7 - Corrective Measures
(1) In the case where any enterprise, etc., posts undue labels or advertisements in
violation of Article 3, paragraph 1, the FTC shall take the following corrective
measures against such enterprises, etc.:
1. cease and desist order;2. public notification on the fact of law violation;
3. corrective advertisements;
4. other measures necessary to correct the violations."
"Article 8 - Temporary Cease and Desist Order
(1) The FTC may issue a temporary cease and desist order against enterprises, etc.,
whose labels or advertisements are:
1. suspected to be in clear violation of Article 3, paragraph 1;  or,2. likely to cause irreparable injury to consumers or rival enterprises, and thus 
preventive measures are in urgent need."
"Article 9 – Surcharge
(1) The FTC may impose upon enterprises in violation of Article 3, paragraph 1
surcharges not exceeding 2 per cent of their turnover as set forth in the Presidential
Decree (meaning operational profits as for the enterprises set forth in the Presidential
Decree.  Hereinafter, the same shall apply.)."
48. Who has the right to enforce a geographical indication?
- Any person whose business interests are infringed or threatened by an aforementioned act of
unfair competition (the Unfair Competition Prevention and Trade Secret Protection Act).
- Any person or entity that marks products with a geographical indication that is registered
under the Agro-Fisheries Product Quality Management Act or the National AgriculturalProducts Quality Management Service (the Agro-Fisheries Product Quality Management
Act).
49. What judicial or administrative bodies have jurisdiction over enforcement actions related to
geographical indications? Are there fees involved and, if so, what are those fees?
Courts and relevant administrative bodies have jurisdiction over enforcement actions related
to geographical indications.IP/C/W/117/Add.20
Page 12
50. Must the public be notified of the existence of a geographical indication and, if so, how and
how often?
Once a geographical indication has been recognized under the Agro-Fisheries Product Quality
Management Act, a registration certificate is issued to the applicant and the date of registration, the
name and address of the applicant, the appellation of the product and the regional range of the
geographical indication are announced in the official gazette .
51. Is unauthorized use of a geographical indication subject to criminal action and, if so,
describe the procedures.  If the law has not been notified pursuant to Article 63.2 of the TRIPS
Agreement, please provide a copy.
The Agro-Fisheries Product Quality Management Act stipulates that those who have attached
a false or similar mark of a registered geographical indication on agricultural or fisheries products or
their processed products shall be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than three years or a fine not
exceeding W 30 million.
H. INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS
52. Is your government party to an international, including bilateral or plurilateral, agreement
for the notification and/or registration of geographical indications? If so, please name the
international agreement and explain the relations hip between it and your national legislation.
No.
53. What other international agreements, if any, have been entered into? What do those
agreements provide?
Korea is a member state of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property.
The Convention provides means for preventing false geographical indications.
II. RESPONSES TO THE QUESTIONS IN DOCUMENT IP/C/13/ADD.1
A. GENERAL (SECTION A OF DOCUMENT IP /C/13)
1. Does your economy's industrial property law and/or related law prevent the use of
geographical indications identifying wines or spirits against products not originating in the place
indicated by the geographical indication, even where the true origin of the goods is indicated or the
geographical indication is used in translation or accompanied by expressions such as "kind", "type",
"style", "imitation" or the like?
Additional protection as provided for in Article 23 of the TRIPS Agreement is provided to
wines and spirits in the Notice Concerning Liquor Labelling, an amendment to which took effect
14 June 2000.  According to the amended Notice, even where the true origin of the goods is indicated
or a geographical indication is used in translation or is accompanied by the expressions such as
"kind", "type", "style", "imitation" or the like, the use of the geographical indication identifying wines
or spirits that do not originate in the place indicated by the geographical indication is prohibited.IP/C/W/117/Add.20
Page 13
B. DEFINITION AND CRITERIA FOR RECOGNITION (SECTION B OF DOCUMENT IIP/C/13)
2. Is there a clear distinction among the terms "geographical indications", "appellations of
origin" and "indications of source" in your economy's industrial property law and/or related law, or
are there any substantive criteria to distinguish these terms?
Those terms are not clearly distinguished in our laws related to intellectual property.
However, according to Article 2(5) of the Agro-Fisheries Product Quality Management Act, a
geographical indication means the geographical name of a specified region, which serves to designate
a product or a processed product originating therein, the reputation, quality and characteristics of
which are essentially attributable to the geographical origin.
3. Does your legislation contain criteria for homonymous geographical indications for wines
and spirits?
See the response to question 14 above.
C. RELATIONSHIP TO TRADEMARKS (SECTION F OF DOCUMENT IP /C/13)
4. Does your economy's industrial property law and/or related law provide the refusal or
invalidation of a trademark registration, which consists of or contains geographical indications
identifying wines or spirits with respect to such wines or spirits not originating in the indicated
territory?
An application for the registration of any trademark that contains or consists of the
geographical indications of wines or spirits that originate in any WTO Member is to be rejected under
Article 7(1)(xiv) of the Trademark Act.
__________