Last March, Vietnam National Coffee Corporation (Vinacafe) made the headlines with its advertisement, but probably not in the way the company would have liked. The TV ad, which boasted that Vinacafe’s coffees were grown in the “best” coffee regions of Vietnam, was criticized for being deceitful, misleading, and, in particular, comparative.

According to Decree 105/2006/ND-CP which was amended and supplemented by Decree 119/2010/ND-CP, it is necessary to compare a sign to a trademark and the goods/services bearing such sign to the goods/services protected under that trademark to define whether a suspected sign (sign imitating a trademark) is an infringing element to a registered trademark.

The Law on Intellectual Property (IP), which came into force on July 1, 2006, together with the Civil Code, which took effect on January 1, 2006, has laid a legal foundation to encourage and protect the fruits of creativity, boost the protection of IP rights in the context of international integration and contribute to the conclusion of Vietnam’s WTO accession negotiations.