The registration of non-traditional trademarks

Non-traditional trademarks are indicated as marks that do not consist of usual signs such as words, logos or their combinations. The eligible signs for trademark registration are not limited in the scope of the Industrial Property Code no. 6769 which came into force in 2017 and its source of law, the EU regulations. Accordingly, all signs can be registered as trademarks as long as the required conditions are met. Therefore, there is no legal obstacle for the registration of non-traditional trademarks. Specifically, the amendments in the related regulations are aimed to make the registration of non-traditional trademarks easier. In addition, the rapid developments in technology have paved the way for the use of these types of trademarks. For these reasons, the demand for the use of unusual signs instead of traditional ones increased considerably in order to enhance the memorability of such mark in the consumer's mind. However, some grounds for refusal and especially inconsistencies in the implementation of these grounds make it challenging to register non-traditional trademarks. In these respects, the issues related to the registration of non-traditional trademarks based on different jurisdictions are discussed in this study. The first part of the study examines the concept of non-traditional trademarks and the relevant legislation, the second part discusses the fundamental criteria for the registration of non-traditional trademarks, the third part discusses visually perceptible non-traditional trademarks, and finally, the last part discusses non-traditional trademarks that are not visually perceptible.