The term “Heat doesn’t burn” industry term is squatted as a trademark by the IQOS company
Recently, some people inside the industry reported that IQOS Philip Morris International has registered the heat doesn’t burn industry term as a trademark!
Hearing this news, it is not only a surprise, but a shock! Heat doesn’t burn, is an industry term, not a product noun, is it really registered as a trademark?
HEAT DOESN’T BURN, when translated into Chinese, the mean is heating without burning; HNB, is the English abbreviation for heating without burning. It is understood that these industry terms are not only squatted as trademarks, but also squatted as international trademarks.
In addition, the HEATSTICKS keyword has also been successfully registered as a trademark in the country. HEAT NOT BURN TECHNOLOGY is currently a trademark in the application.
On August 7, the e-cigarette public reported that Philip Morris International sued British American Tobacco for its product IQOS, and Philip Morris International said that certain features of British American Tobacco’s product Glo infringe on the technology involved in Philip Morris International’s two patents in Japan. To this end, Philip Morris International seeks compensation of 100 million yen (US$896,160) and a permanent ban. At that time, some people thought it was a single incident.
It is currently found that it is not a single event. Recently, many domestic companies involved in heating and non-burning business have reported that they have also received complaints from international tobacco giant Philip Morris International.
Philip Morris International’s agency issued a warning letter to major companies, alleging that it violated Philip Morris International’s intellectual property rights (copyright and trademark rights) and constituted unfair competition!
At present, all the companies that do heating and non-burning products are mainly exported. These industry nouns have been squatted as trademarks, and how do they be promoted on major international e-commerce platforms and social platforms?
In response to such serious problems, industry practitioners have issued appeals:
- Philip Morris International registered as a trademark for heating non-burning industry words. Is it reasonable?
- The equipment for roasting cannabis is earlier than 2012. The related technology products are earlier than the application time of Philip Morris International. How do you see the patents of Philip Morris International?
- How to solve this problem?
It is hoped that companies that do heat not burn products will gather ideas and find solutions. Otherwise, it will be fatally affected to be promoted on major international e-commerce platforms and social platforms.
