Questions and answers about trademark

A trademark must have distinctiveness or be distinctive in order to be registered. This means that the mark must be capable of distinguishing the goods or services of the business from those of others.

A trademark is considered descriptive when it simply tells something about the goods or services.

For example, VINTER (Winter) or WARM on a jacket would indicate that it is suitable for use in winter. SUPER suggests that the goods are of good quality, and FAMILY indicates who the products are aimed at. Such descriptive words cannot be registered as trademarks.

This is a term we use when a large part of the customer base would believe that two trademarks have the same commercial origin, for example, that they come from the same manufacturer.

Similarity of goods means that two trademarks apply to the same or similar goods. If the trademarks apply to services, we often refer to it as similarity of services.

Similarity is a term used in the assessment of similarity of goods/services.

If two trademarks apply to exactly the same goods, we often use the term "identity of goods" or say that they are the same or identical goods. If the goods are similar to each other, meaning they have the same purpose, are used together, are normally produced from the same type of material, etc., we say that there is similarity.

Genericization occurs when a trademark becomes the actual word for a product or service, thus losing its function as a distinctive sign.

Examples of this include "linoleum," "gramophone," and "thermos," which were once trademarks for different products, but over time, the trademark became the generic term.

An association of businesses can obtain exclusive rights for its members to use a trademark or another sign for their goods and/or services.

A collective trademark is a shared trademark:

• for use by members of an association or union, or
• that can be used as a guarantee/control mark by a government authority or association that oversees goods and services.

Examples: stamps on organic products, environmental labels, or a collective trademark for use by members of a sports federation.

A specific sound that indicates a commercial origin can be registered as a trademark.

Examples could be the sound when a computer is turned on, the sound when a radio program starts, or the sound a mobile application makes when the user sends or receives money.

You must submit an audio file that reproduces the sound along with the trademark application. Alternatively, you can submit an accurate representation of the sound in a musical notation system.

A trademark that consists of or includes a movement or a change in the position of the elements of the trademark.

For example, it could be a trademark consisting of a logo that moves, changes color, or where new elements are introduced over time.

In the trademark application, you must submit a video clip that shows the mark. Alternatively, you can submit numbered still images that show the movement or the change in the position of the trademark elements.

This is a trademark where one or more colors are sought to be registered as a trademark in themselves.

An example is the color pink for insulation material. Strict requirements are set for a specific business to obtain exclusive rights to a color or color combination for a product or service.

A combined mark or figurative mark registered in a specific color is not considered a color trademark.

You can register a specific scent for a product, for example, the scent of beer for darts or the scent of motor oil for magazines.

This is a type of trademark where, at present, there is uncertainty about whether it falls under the trademark category and how these might be represented graphically.

You can find applications that have been started or submitted in Altinn.

When you apply to register a trademark, you must state which goods and services (products) you intend the trademark to be used for. All goods and services are divided into a system consisting of 45 different classes.

Read more about goods and services

You pay an application fee for us to process your application. A trademark application costs from NOK 3,800.

The registration lasts for 10 years from the date of application. You can renew your registration every 10 years an unlimited number of times. The renewal fee starts at NOK 3,400.

See the full price list

Choose the right goods and services for your trademark

The submission day is the date the application is submitted, meaning the day the Norwegian Industrial Property Office has received the application.

You can expect a response within 3 weeks if you pay upon submission of the application and use pre-approved product names (terms) from the product selector.

Processing of audio, motion, multimedia and hologram marks may take longer.

If the application is not paid upon submission, or you have not selected a pre-approved term, you can expect a response within 4 months after we have received payment.

See the application process step by step

A limited list of goods means that the list of goods has been restricted compared to the one submitted with the application.

The Norwegian Industrial Property Office may suggest that you limit the list of goods if we cannot register your trademark for all the goods or services. In this case, you may still be able to have the trademark registered for some of them. You can also suggest limiting the list of goods yourself in order to get the trademark registered. It is not possible to expand a list of goods.

The registration of a trademark for fewer goods than in the original list of goods.

An exception notice is an indication in a trademark registration that one or more elements of the mark are not covered by the protection provided by the registration. The purpose of the exception notice is to avoid uncertainty regarding the scope of trademark rights. If a mark is registered without an exception notice but still contains one or more elements that cannot be registered separately, the protection will not cover those parts of the mark.

Your Norwegian trademark application is only valid in Norway. If you want protection in multiple countries, there are different ways to proceed.

Read more about international trademark registration

Convention priority allows an applicant to claim protection for their trademark in other countries from the date the application was filed in the first country, in accordance with the Paris Convention.

The deadline for claiming convention priority is six months. Essentially, this priority acts like a "queue ticket" that lasts for six months from the filing of the first application.

An international agreement that makes it easier to apply for international trademark registration in multiple countries simultaneously.

Individuals or companies with a connection to one of the member states of the Madrid Protocol can apply for registration in other member countries based on a national trademark application or trademark registration.

Norway is a member of the Madrid Protocol.

An EU trademark, once registered, applies in all countries that are members of the EU (it does not apply in the EEA).

Applicants who reside in Norway or companies based in Norway can submit an application for an EU trademark (EUTM) directly to the EUIPO trademark office in Alicante, but it may be beneficial to use a representative who is authorized to assist clients in the EU.

Yes. A trademark registration is valid for 10 years. After that, you must renew it.

Read more about payment and trademark renewal

Yes. You must monitor your trademark yourself.

You can use our trademark register to perform regular searches and keep track of what is happening with your own trademark and with potential competitors. You can also search the Norwegian Trademark Gazette to get an overview of registrations, renewals and changes in your competitors’ trademark rights. 

Anyone who believes that a trademark has been registered on an incorrect basis can submit a written opposition to the registration to NIPO.

The deadline for submitting an opposition is three months from the day registration was announced. The opposition may result in the registration being wholly or partially revoked.