Research On The Fair Use System Of Geographical Indication

A geographical indication is an indication that a commodity originates from a certain region,and that the specific quality,reputation or other characteristics of the commodity are mainly determined by the natural or human factors of the region,and is a unique type of intellectual property that indicates the quality,reputation,origin and other information of a commodity or service.In today’s fast-developing economy,the branding effect of geographical indications is becoming increasingly apparent,and various countries and international organisations have enacted legislation to protect geographical indications in order to give full play to the trademark benefits of geographical indications,improve farmers’ income and promote the upgrading of rural industrial structures.In this context,it has become a consensus to further explore the value of geographical indications and expand the scope of control of geographical indication rights.However,if the rights are expanded indefinitely,it will inevitably affect the order of economic operation and will restrict free competition in the market,which is not in line with the objective of China’s Trademark Law to promote the development of socialist market economy,and therefore it is necessary to limit the rights of the right holders of geographical indications in China.This paper has five main chapters: Chapter 1,Introduction,mainly introduces the background and significance of this paper’s research,analyses the domestic and foreign literature,and introduces the research ideas and methods,the innovation points and shortcomings of the research.Chapter 2 introduces the relevant concepts of geographical indications and the concept,types and nature of the fair use of geographical indications.Chapter 3 analyses the justification of the fair use of geographical indications from the perspectives of jurisprudence and economics,and concludes that the fair use system of geographical indications is conducive to safeguarding fairness and justice,protecting the freedom of commercial expression,safeguarding the balance of interests and maintaining the order of market competition,as well as effectively allocating resources and alleviating the conflicts among various interest subjects.Chapter 4 compares the legislative and judicial status of the fair use of geographical indications in China,and analyses the problems of the fair use of geographical indications in China in the light of the legislative and judicial status,namely,the lack of guiding principles for the fair use of geographical indications in China,the weak generality of the legal provisions on the fair use of geographical indications,the lack of uniform standards for the recognition of the fair use of geographical indications,and the vague boundary of the fair use of geographical indications.Chapter 5 reflects on the problems in the fair use of geographical indications in China,and puts forward the following specific suggestions in response to the problems raised in Chapter 4: clarifying the guiding principles,improving the relevant rules and provisions on the fair use of geographical indications in China,unifying the recognition criteria for the fair use of geographical indications,and clarifying the boundaries of the fair use of geographical indications.