GENEVA - Singapore became the first state to ratify a new international treaty on trademarks, concluded less than one year ago under the auspices of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and which bears the country’s name in recognition of it having hosted the final round of negotiations that led to the Treaty’s adoption.
According to a press release by WIPO, the Singapore Treaty on the Law of Trademarks (Singapore Treaty) was adopted on March 27, 2006, and capped international efforts to update the 1994 Trademark Law Treaty (TLT) bringing it in line with the technological developments of the past decade.
Singapore’s instrument of ratification was deposited with the Director General of WIPO, Dr. Kamil Idris, on March 26, 2007. The Singapore Treaty will enter into force once it has been adhered to by ten countries or qualifying intergovernmental organizations.
The Treaty deals mainly with procedural aspects of trademark registration and licensing and introduces greater flexibilities and efficiencies into the delivery of trademark registration services.