Effects of Trademark Rights
In Japan, trademark rights are established based on the Trademark Act in order to maintain business reputation of a person who uses trademarks and protect the interests of consumers.
Under the Trademark Act, when a person files an application for trademark registration to the Japan Patent Office specifying the trademark and the designated goods/services, and pays registration fee after the registration is decided to be granted through examination, a trademark right arises.
An owner of a trademark right not only has an exclusive right to use the registered trademark in connection with the designated goods/services (this right is called “right of exclusive use”), but also is allowed to exclude the use of the scope of similarity by another person (this right is called “right to prohibit use of others”).
The following diagram shows the scope of “right of exclusive use” and “right to prohibit use of others”.
(Source: “Effects of Trademark Rights” from the web site of Japan Patent Office)