A trademark is considered an intangible asset that has positive effects on the goodwill of a business. Through trademarks, goods and brands are able to distinguish themselves from others and attest to their quality. In spite of the laudable effects of trademarks, the trademark registration process in Nigeria leaves much to be desired.
A Case for Digitizing the Trademark Registry in Nigeria
A juxtaposition of the current state of the Trademark Registry with that of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) would greatly facilitate an understanding of the need for the Trademark Registry to improve its online operations.
Prior to the launching of the CAC online system in 2015, the process of registering a Company was done manually. Consequently, going through the initial stages of starting a business was a time-consuming task. According to the World Bank’s Report on Doing Business 2014, a person had to go through an average of 10 procedures over 33 days in order to start a limited liability Company.[1] Certificates of Incorporation were issued directly from the headquarters in Abuja.
Over time, Nigeria has been able to perfect its use of the CAC online system. Searches for available company names can be done online. As at 2019, Nigeria ranked 131 out of 190 economies in the ease of doing business.[2] The number of procedures involved in starting a business have reduced from 10 to 7 and it now takes approximately 7 days for a limited liability Company to be registered. The digitization of the Corporate Affairs Commission has reduced the level of bureaucracy involved in Company registrations and this, among others, has contributed to Nigeria’s improved score to 86.2 in starting a business.
In Nigeria, debarring any delays, it takes approximately 18-24 months to register a trademark or sometimes longer. Unlike the search process at the CAC, the preliminary trademark availability search process is still done manually at the Trademarks, Patent and Designs Registry in Abuja. For Practitioners not based or with an office in Abuja, this would add the inconvenience of travel to effectively handle the process of registration of a trademark. In other jurisdictions such as the United Kingdom, the preliminary trademark availability search can be done by using the online platform made available by the Intellectual Property Office (IPO). Searches can be done by trademark number, owner, and keyword, phrase or image.
Once a trademark application is accepted, it is published in the trademark journal to give interested parties the opportunity to notify the Registry of their objections to the registration of the trademark. Unfortunately, there is no online version of the trademark journal in respect of trademark applications made in Nigeria. Therefore, physical copies of the journal have to be obtained. This does not promote efficiency in the trademark registration process. In the United Kingdom, the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) makes the online version of the trademark journal available. Details of the application such as the word, image, class and owner are provided.
Having a registered trademark is one of the requirements as stipulated by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) that must be satisfied by those intending to venture into the pharmaceutical market. By extension, it would take much longer for a pharmaceutical company to commence operations in Nigeria. Thus, delays experienced as a result of the bureaucracy involved in the trademark registration process can dampen interest in investing in the pharmaceutical market in Nigeria.
Conclusion
The important role that trademark registration plays in brand recognition cannot be underestimated. Although Nigerian institutions are slowly embracing the advantages brought by technology, there is still room for improvement. Digitizing the trademark registry can contribute positively to the ease of doing business in Nigeria, especially with the current ongoing COVID-19 experience. On this basis, it is important to address the need for the Trademark Registry to improve the functionality of its online platform.
[1] https://www.doingbusiness.org/content/dam/doingBusiness/media/Subnational-Reports/DB14-Nigeria.pdf
[2] https://www.doingbusiness.org/content/dam/doingBusiness/country/n/nigeria/NGA.pdf