Back to Trademark registration process

What is an IPO register search?

Senior Trademark Attorney

An IPO register search is a search of a country's trademark registry; the official public database containing all registered, pending, and abandoned trademarks in that jurisdiction. Anyone can search the register; it is publicly accessible through the IP office's online database.

The primary use of a register search before filing is to identify existing trademarks that could conflict with a new application; either as a basis for an examiner refusal or as a potential opposition by an earlier mark's owner. A thorough search covers not only identical marks but also marks that are phonetically, visually, or conceptually similar in the same or related classes.

Related questions

How long does it take to register a trademark?

We have looked into the last 1,000 trademarks registered in main intellectual property offices, including USPTO (United States), UKIPO (United Kingdom), EUIPO (European Union), CNIPA (China), CIPO (Canada), ROSPATENT (Russia), IPA (Australia), BOIP (Benelux), IGE-IPI (Switzerland), NIPO (Norway), KIPO (Republic of Korea), and CGPDTM (India), exploring the average time it takes for a trademark to be registered in the selected jurisdictions.

From Kimono, through #KimOhNo, to Skims: A branding nightmare for Kim Kardashian

#KimOhNo became a symbol of the backlash to Kim Kardashian’s attempt to register a trademark for her new line of shape wear, Kimono.

Brands and environmentalism: EUIPO study reveals surge in 'green' trademarks

Increasing environmental concerns lead to shifting consumer behavior, and many brands address these concerns by registering ‘green’ trademarks. The results of the study conducted by EUIPO in 2021 found a 900% increase in green trademarks being filed, demonstrating that “growing interest in sustainability is indeed reflected in the EUTMs filed at the EUIPO [1]. Read about the current green trademark trend in the EU in this article.