Nice classification, 10th edition

Registrable as a trademark are all distinctive and graphically representable signs, such as words, names, acronyms, letters, numbers, devices, emblems, holograms, colours, combinations or shades of colours, three-dimensional forms, the three-dimensional form of a good or its packaging, trade dress, sound marks and olfactory marks and any combination of the mentioned signs.
The following trademark types are registrable: trade marks, service marks, collective marks, certification marks, trade names and titles of establishment.

TThe application is filed at the “Instituto Ecuatoriano de Propiedad Industrial Intelectual (I.E.P.I.)”.
A separate application needs to be filed for each class.
Foreign applicants may file an application through a local agent with a power of attorney attested by a notary and legalised by Apostille.
A power of attorney attested by a notary is necessary.
Foreign applicants do not need a domestic registration.
The application process includes a formal examination, publication in the monthly Industrial Property Gazette, and an examination of distinctiveness among prior trademarks.
The processing time from first filing to registration is approx. 6 months.
The trademark application is published 2 months after the application.

National:
The opposition period is 30 working days from publication date of the application. The period cannot be extended. Oppositions are also possible by owners of trademarks in other member states of the Andean Pact in which case a local application needs to be filed to acknowledge legitimate interest.

Opposition against designation of IR Mark
(The period starts from the national publication date, if not stated differently):
not a member of the Madrid Agreement or Protocol.

Protection begins with the date of allowance of registration. A trademark registration is valid for 10 years from the date of allowance of registration. The registration is renewable for periods of 10 years.

If the trademark has not been used for a continuous period of 3 years in at least one member state of the Andean Pact, it will be vulnerable agains toa cancellation action by a third party.

The official fee for a trademark application is USD 116.- (approx. EUR 92.-) including the issuance of the title.

The official fee for a three-dimensional trademark application is UDS 336.- (approx. EUR 266.-).

Trademark Licence Agreement
In Ecuador licence agreements must be in writing. Since the registration of trademarks is mandatory, it is not permitted to license the use of unregistered trademarks. However, trademarks whose registration is pending may be licensed. A licence may be restricted to some of the goods or services in respect of which the mark is registered. The sale of a registered trademark does not automatically terminate the licence. There are no statutory provisions prescribing the terms of licensing. Andean Law and Ecuadorian Law require that licences may not contain provisions which restrict commerce or create unfair competition.

Recordal
There are provisions in law for the mandatory recordal of a licensee with the Trademark Office. The Andean
Community Law provides that every licence shall be registered before the local Intellectual Property Office. Lack of registration causes the licence to be unenforceable against third parties. There is no time frame for a recordal and no prescribed form or content for a licence agreement.

The following document is required for a recordal:
1. A power of attorney, granted by the owner of the trademark, simply signed

Effectiveness
A licence becomes enforceable against third parties as from the date of recordal with the Trademark Office. The licence is not required to be published.

Infringement Proceedings
There is an evidentiary presumption that use by a recorded licensee is permitted use. The licensee may join the proprietor in infringement proceedings. The licensee may also call upon the trademark owner to institute infringement proceedings. However, he may not institute proceedings in his own name, even if the proprietor neglects to do so, unless the contract provides otherwise.

Remarks
Contracts providing for royalties must be registered and pre-approved. There are taxes for capital outflows

Search type	First class	Add. class
Word Mark Search (availability)	230,00 €	190,00 €
Word Mark Search (identical)	210,00 €	150,00 €
Extended Search (word mark, company name, domain)	690,00 €	190,00 €
Device Mark Search (availability)	440,00 €	310,00 €
Trademark Owner Search	390,00 €
Company Name Search	540,00 €
Domain Name Search (extended)
i-Search (word mark availability + legal opinion)	480,00 €	330,00 €

The Prices above are S.M.D. Markeur Search Fees