INTERNATIONAL CLASSIFICATION OF THE FIGURATIVE ELEMENTS OF .

INTERNATIONAL CLASSIFICATIONOF THE FIGURATIVE ELEMENTSOF MARKS(VIENNA CLASSIFICATION)SEVENTH EDITION2012

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in anyform or by any means (electronically, mechanically, by photocopying,recording or otherwise) without the prior permission of the copyrightowner.WIPO PUBLICATIONNo. 502E/7ISBN 978-92-805-2167-2

CONTENTSPagePreface .(v)Vienna AgreementEstablishing an International Classification of the FigurativeElements of Marks .(ix)Recommendations concerning the application of the Vienna Classification(xx)Vienna Classification:Guidance for the User .1Table of Categories .2Table of Categories and Divisions, with Explanatory Notes .3List of Categories, Divisions and Sections, with Explanatory Notes .15General Notes .16Examples of Figurative Elements relating to certain divisions .105**(iii)*

PREFACEHISTORY OF THE VIENNA CLASSIFICATIONAt the request of a number of industrial property offices of member countries ofthe Paris Union, the United International Bureaux for the Protection of IntellectualProperty (BIRPI), predecessor of the World Intellectual Property Organization(WIPO), began working with a Committee of Experts set up in 1967 by the BIRPIInterunion Coordination Committee on the drafting of an international classification ofthe figurative elements of marks. The classification was established by anagreement concluded on June 12, 1973, at the Vienna Diplomatic Conference.The countries party to the Vienna Agreement Establishing an InternationalClassification of the Figurative Elements of Marks (hereinafter referred to as “theVienna Agreement” and “the Classification,” respectively) have adopted and apply acommon classification for the figurative elements of marks.The Vienna Agreement entered into force on August 9, 1985. The followingcountries are party to it (May 1, 2012): Armenia, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina,Bulgaria, Croatia, Cuba, France, Guinea, Jamaica, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Luxembourg,Malaysia, Mexico, Montenegro, Netherlands, Poland, Republic of Korea, Republic ofMoldova, Romania, Saint Lucia, Serbia, Slovenia, Sweden, the former YugoslavRepublic of Macedonia, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan,Ukraine, Uruguay (31).PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF THE VIENNA CLASSIFICATIONThe purpose of the Classification is essentially the practical one of facilitatingtrademark anticipation searches and obviating substantial reclassification work whendocuments are exchanged at the international level. What is more, the countriesparty to the Vienna Agreement no longer need to draw up their own nationalclassification or keep an existing one up to date.Article 4 of the Vienna Agreement provides that, subject to the requirementsprescribed by the Agreement itself, the scope of the Classification is that attributed toit by each of the countries party to the Vienna Agreement, and that, in particular, theClassification does not bind those countries in respect of the extent of the protectionafforded to the mark. Thus, any of those countries may give the Classification thelegal scope that best suits its needs, over and above the purely administrativeimplications under the Vienna Agreement.STRUCTURE OF THE VIENNA CLASSIFICATIONThe Classification constitutes a hierarchical system that proceeds from thegeneral to the particular, dividing all figurative elements into categories, divisions andsections. Where appropriate, explanatory notes have been introduced. Theyconcern either a category as a whole (including all its divisions) or any given divisionor section.(v)

The sections are of two kinds. In addition to main sections, there are auxiliarysections intended for figurative elements that are already covered by the mainsections, but which it is considered useful to group according to a particular criterionfor ease of anticipation searching.Every category, division and section has been given a number according to aspecial coding system. Every figurative element in a section is referred to by threenumbers: the first, which may be any number from 1 to 29, denotes the category;the second, which may be any number from 1 to 19, the division; and the third, whichmay be any number from 1 to 30, the section. For instance, the representation of “alittle girl eating” belongs to Category 2 (Human beings), Division 5 (Children), MainSection 3 (Girls). If auxiliary sections are used, the figurative element can beidentified additionally with the Auxiliary Section 18 (Children drinking or eating, codeA 2.5.18). The codification of this example will be then indicated asfollows: 2.5.3, 18.The number of divisions and sections varies according to the categories anddivisions to which they belong. Within the divisions and sections, certain numbershave been left vacant in order to permit the introduction of new divisions or sectionswhen necessary.This publication contains the seventh edition of the Classification, which comprisesa total of:29 categories,145 divisions,806 main sections, and903 auxiliary sections.The examples of figurative elements relating to certain divisions, which arereproduced on pages 109 to 123, are included for information purposes only, and aretherefore not an integral part of the Classification.USE OF THE VIENNA CLASSIFICATIONThe countries party to the Vienna Agreement may apply the Classification eitheras a principal or as a subsidiary system. Thus, they have the possibility ofcontinuing, if they see fit, to use their national classification at the same time as theVienna Classification, either as a transitional or as a permanent measure.The competent offices of countries party to the Vienna Agreement are obligedto include in the official documents and publications relating to registrations andrenewals of marks the numbers of the categories, divisions and sections in which thefigurative elements of those marks have been placed. “Documents and publications”mean, in particular, entries in the trademark register, registration and renewalcertificates and publications of registrations and renewals in office journals orgazettes.The numbers of the categories, divisions and sections appearing in officialdocuments and publications relating to registrations should be preceded, for ease ofcomprehension, by the full name “Classification of Figurative Elements” or by theabbreviation CFE (see page (xx)). It is recommended that the edition of the Vienna(vi)

Classification according to which figurative elements of marks are classified beindicated by an Arabic numeral in round brackets, for example, CFE (7).The Classification is sufficiently detailed for each section to contain only arelatively small number of figurative elements, even when used by large industrialproperty offices, thereby facilitating anticipation searches. It is perhaps too detailed,however, for offices that register relatively few marks. Countries party to the ViennaAgreement may therefore declare that they reserve the right not to include thenumbers of all or some of the sections in official documents and publications relatingto registrations and renewals of marks (Article 4(5) of the Vienna Agreement).Moreover, the “auxiliary” sections, the numerical code of which is preceded by an “A”in the Classification, are in any event not mandatory; national offices may use themat their discretion.REVISIONS OF THE VIENNA CLASSIFICATIONThe Classification published here is based on that approved on June 12, 1973,at the Vienna Diplomatic Conference.Pending the entry into force of the Vienna Agreement, a provisional Committeeof Experts, set up under a resolution adopted by the Vienna Diplomatic Conferenceon June 8, 1973, met in 1975 and 1976 to draw up proposals for amendments andadditions to the original version of the Classification. Those proposals, after havingbeen incorporated in the original version of the Classification, were published in aprovisional edition in 1977.Following the entry into force of the Vienna Agreement, the Committee ofExperts set up under Article 5 of the Agreement, at its first session, in Geneva inMay 1987, approved the majority of the amendments and additions proposed by theprovisional Committee of Experts. At its second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth sessions,held in Geneva, respectively in June 1992, October 1996, October 2001,November 2006 and October 2011, the Committee of Experts adopted a number ofamendments and additions. The corresponding changes have been incorporated inthe Classification.At its third session in 1996, the Committee of Experts adopted a newpresentation of the Classification which consists in placing, within each division, theauxiliary sections at the end of the division, in marking the principal sections to whichauxiliary sections are associated with an asterisk and in placing the auxiliary sectionsunder appropriate headings.EDITIONS OF THE VIENNA CLASSIFICATIONThe first edition of the Classification was published in 1973, the second in 1988,the third in 1993, the fourth in 1997, the fifth in 2002 and the sixth in 2007.This edition (the seventh), published in June 2012, will enter into force onJanuary 1, 2013. It replaces the previous editions.(vii)

LANGUAGES OF THE VIENNA CLASSIFICATIONThe Classification has been established in English and French, both texts beingequally authentic.***The seventh edition of the Vienna Classification may be ordered from theWorld Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), 34, chemin des Colombettes,P.O. Box 18, CH-1211 Geneva 20 or from the Electronic Bookshop on the website ofWIPO at the following address: http://www.wipo.int/ebookshop.Geneva, June 2012(viii)

Vienna AgreementVIENNA AGREEMENTESTABLISHING AN INTERNATIONAL CLASSIFICATIONOF THE FIGURATIVE ELEMENTS OF MARKSdone at Vienna on June 12, 1973,as amended on October 1, 1985TABLE OF CONTENTS*Article 1: Establishment of a Special Union; Adoption of an International ClassificationArticle 2: Definition and Deposit of the Classification of Figurative ElementsArticle 3: Languages of the Classification of Figurative ElementsArticle 4: Use of the Classification of Figurative ElementsArticle 5: Committee of ExpertsArticle 6: Notification, Entry Into Force and Publication of Amendments and Additions andof Other DecisionsArticle 7: Assembly of the Special UnionArticle 8: International BureauArticle 9: FinancesArticle 10: Revision of the AgreementArticle 11: Amendment of Certain Provisions of the AgreementArticle 12: Becoming Party to the AgreementArticle 13: Entry Into Force of the AgreementArticle 14: Duration of the AgreementArticle 15: DenunciationArticle 16: DisputesArticle 17: Signature, Languages, Depositary Functions, Notifications*This Table of Contents is added for the convenience of the reader. It does not appear in thesigned text of the Agreement.(ix)