Oficina Española de Patentes y Marcas

Internationalisation

Introduction

In general, industrial property registries are territorial, meaning that registration of a patent, trademark or industrial design with the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office (SPTO) only grants the owner an exclusive right to use it the Spanish territory. As a result, products that include a protected mode cannot be exported to other States with guarantees if they have not also been registered there by the same holder.

However, there is a possibility of protection in a larger territorial scope through a community or international registration.

However, it must be kept in mind that community or international protection is costly and, therefore, before taking a decision, it is essential to evaluate the following aspects:

What are our potential and future markets?
In which markets would be we willing to undertake legal action to protect our position?
What resources do we have available?
What is the strategic position of our competitors?

Depending on the outcome of this analysis, different protection strategies exist: national, community or international.