Laws
This Law shall govern relations concerning the registration, legal protection and use of trademarks, service marks and appellations of origin.
Law on Trademarks, Service Marks and Appellations of Origin (in force until July 1, 2010)
Chapter 4: Use of a Trademark
Article 22. Use of a Trademark and the Consequences of its Non-Use(1) A trademark shall be considered to be used when it is placed on goods for which the trademark is registered, and/or their packaging.
(2) A trademark shall also be considered to be used when it is applied in advertising, publications, and also official forms, signboards, displays of exhibits at exhibitions and fairs organized in the Republic of Armenia, only in cases where the mark cannot be displayed on goods and/or their packaging.
(3) Legal persons and individual manufacturers acting as intermediaries may, on the basis of an agreement, use their trademark in addition to that of the manufacturer of the goods or instead of it.
4. The validity of a trademark registration may, on the bases of a request from any person, by the decision of the Board of Appeal, be terminated prematurely in relation to all the goods for which it is registered, or to a part of them, if within five years after the date of registration, or in the case of later filing within five years preceding to it, the mark has not been used or has been used in a non-reasonable volume by the holder or person with such an entitlement, according to a licensing agreement and pursuant to Article 26 of this Law. The evidence of use of the trademark shall be provided by the holder or by a person entitled to use the mark by licensing agreement. The decision of the Board of Appeal may be appealed in the court within six months after the decision is taken.
(5) The validity of the registration of a trademark may not, based on paragraph 4 of this Article, be terminated in relation to all goods or part thereof, if:
(a) the trademark owner or person entitled to use the trademark has cited reasons relating to the fact that the non-use of the trademark is the result of circumstances which are insurmountable, unforeseen and beyond his control;
(b) the trademark was used by its owner or by a person entitled to use it such that it differs from that registered only in relation to individual elements which do not change its distinguishing features;
(c) in the Republic of Armenia the trademark was placed on goods and/or their packaging exclusively for export purposes.
(6) (Paragraph 6 is cancelled).
Article 23. Restriction of Rights of a Trademark Owner
(1) The owner of a trademark may not prohibit third persons from using, in the process of commercial activity:
(a) their title (name, pseudonym) or address;
(b) designations characterizing the form, quality, quantity, cost, purpose of creation (provision) and other features of a good, and also designations characterizing the time and place of production and manufacture (provision) of a good;
(c) a trademark, where this is required to indicate the purpose of creation (provision) of a good, in particular as auxiliary or spare parts, if they are used without harming the lawful interests of the trademark owner and of third persons, and without misleading the user.
(2) The owner of a registered trademark may not prohibit the use by other persons of a given mark in relation to goods which the mark owner introduced, or which were introduced with his consent, into the economy in any country with this designation, if the characteristics of these goods in the marketing process were not subject to change either naturally or as a result of interference.
Article 24. Preventive Labeling
A trademark owner may place, next to the trademark, a preventive mark confirming registration of the trademark in question in the Republic of Armenia—in the form of an ® in a circle or the individual Latin letter R, or also in the form of the expressions “Trademark” or “Registered trademark.”
