Back to (Inter)national trademarks

Is the Madrid Protocol the same thing as the Madrid System?

Founder & Trademark Attorney

No, though they are closely related. The Madrid System is the overarching framework for international trademark registration and comprises two separate treaties: the Madrid Agreement (1891) and the Madrid Protocol (1989). Together they form the Madrid System.

The Madrid Protocol is the more widely adopted of the two and is the treaty most applicants use today. Most countries that participate in the Madrid System do so under the Protocol rather than the older Agreement. In practice, when people refer to filing through "the Madrid System," they typically mean filing under the Protocol.

Related questions

Avoid these 5 risks of unregistered trademarks

Many entrepreneurs still consider trademark registration to be the least important step in the process of establishing their brand. This can become a big issue. Not registering a trademark from the start leaves a company vulnerable to potential copycats and other forms of brand infringement that can significantly damage its reputation and hamper growth. Here are 5 main risks associated with not registering a trademark that can be detrimental to your brand

13 good reasons why startups should think about trademark registration from the very start

Approximately 100 million new businesses are established each year [1]. The failure rate of startups is around 90% [2] and while there is a myriad of factors that influence startup success, we do believe that effective brand protection represents one of them. This article thereby presents a concise summary of 13 good reasons why startups should think about trademark registration from the very start.

Brand protection and music festivals: the case of Coachella

Ghana’s music festival Afrochella is accused of trademark infringement in a lawsuit filed by organizers of Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. This is not the first Goldenvoice, the company behind Coachella, have appeared in headlines for enforcing its trademarks, showing that music festivals are just as adamant about their intellectual property rights as any other brand.