Patent Office, 'Familiar yet New' Long-Standing Trademark Collaboration Products Gain Popularity

Example materials of unique collaboration products using Jangsu Sangpyo. Provided by the Korean Intellectual Property Office

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] Unique collaborative products combined with long-established trademarks are attracting attention in the market as a new marketing strategy.

According to the Korean Intellectual Property Office on the 11th, unique collaborative products refer to products created through collaboration between different fields.

Representative examples include ‘Gompyo Beer’, ‘Malpyo Beer’, and ‘Mat Salt Popcorn’.

Gompyo, registered in 1955 and still managed today, is considered a representative long-established trademark. Additionally, Miwon was registered as a trademark in 1987, and Malpyo in 1990, both maintaining their rights to this day as long-established trademarks.

Products like Gompyo Beer are unique collaborative products that combine long-established trademarks with new products, creating new items that are not previously available but feel familiar to consumers.

The Korean Intellectual Property Office analyzes that, keeping this effect in mind, cases of companies launching new products by combining “well-established long-standing trademarks” that have been used for a long time and are familiar to consumers have recently increased.

Kim Yeon-su, an examiner of the International Trademark Examination Team at the Korean Intellectual Property Office, said, “Trademarks that have been managed for a long time naturally build trust among consumers,” adding, “The recent use of long-established trademarks by companies to diversify marketing methods and expand business areas is likely for the same reason.”

Meanwhile, it has been investigated that as of this month, there are a total of about 420,000 trademarks that have maintained their rights for more than 10 years after registration. The average maintenance (lifespan) period of registered trademark rights is also found to be 11.6 years.

Among them, trademarks that have maintained rights for more than 60 years total 302 cases, more than 50 years total 1,373 cases, more than 40 years total 6,516 cases, and more than 30 years total 35,598 cases.