商标指示性使用边界探讨

The Boundary of Nominative Fair Use of Trademarks

商标指示性使用作为一种不侵权抗辩理由,有严格的适用条件。我国商标法未对其进行明文规定,在案件审理上存在着司法裁判标准不一等问题。本文通过对超出商标指示性使用范围导致赞助混淆的司法判例进行梳理,对相关案情形进行类别化,并分析商标指示性使用与赞助混淆制度背后的原理,尝试厘清指示性使用的正确适用条件,即商标指示性使用应当在使用意图上善意、使用情形上必要、使用方式上适度、使用结果上无赞助混淆可能性等。

As a non-infringement defense, nominative fair use of trademarks has strict applicable conditions. There is no clear provision in the trademark law of our country, and there are different judicial standards in the case trial. This paper reviews the judicial cases that lead to sponsorship confusion beyond the scope of nominative fair use of trademarks. This paper classifies the relevant cases and analyzes the principles behind the system of trademark nominative fair use and sponsorship confusion in order to clarify the correct conditions for the application of nominative fair use, that is, the nominative fair use of trademarks should be good faith in the intention of use, necessary in the circumstances of use, moderate in the way of use, and no possibility of sponsorship confusion in the result of use.