Frequently Asked Questions - general

As of 18:00 UTC on 15 February 2023 all active SMD files will be revoked and automatically regenerated within maximum 24 hours. As the Trademark Clearinghouse sends out notifications for the revocation and generation of an SMD file, kindly note that depending on the number of active SMD files in your TMCH account, a large bulk of notifications can be received.

As of 18:00 UTC on 15 February 2023 all active SMD files will be revoked and automatically regenerated. This renewal process has a duration of maximum 24 hours, but the new SMD files will gradually become available for download.

No, as of 18:00 UTC on 15 February 2023 all active SMD files will be revoked and automatically regenerated. During the next 24 hours (maximum), the SMD files will be gradually replaced and will become available for download on our platform. We confirm that there are no active Sunrise periods for New gTLDs during this period so the impact for you (and your clients) will be limited.

The new Trademark Clearinghouse Certificate Authority (TMCH-CA) and related Trademark Validator (TMV) certificate will replace the current Certificate Authority and certificate entirely. The current SMD files are from that moment onwards no longer compliant with the new standards and hence all SMD files will need to be revoked and regenerated using the new certificate.

As a consequence, after the new TMCH-CA and TMV certificate are in use, all trademark holders and agents will be required to acquire new Signed Mark Data (SMD) files from the TMCH platform. Older SMD files signed with the current TMCH-CA will no longer be usable.

Kindly note that it is possible to download the new SMD file in the web interface:

  • Sign in to the TMCH application;
  • Navigate to the "services" tab;
  • Navigate to the "services" tab;
  • Find the mark record for which you want to download the SMD file (keep in mind that only verified mark records with valid POU documentation are eligible for SMD generation);
  • Click on the file icon in the SMD column;
  • Your browser will then download the SMD file.

The Trademark Clearinghouse Certificate Authority (TMCH-CA), and related Trademark Validator (TMV) certificate used for the SMD file, needs to be renewed to ensure standard security best practices. These best practices require to change the Certificate Authority from time to time and make sure that the encryption level is up the current standards. More specially is the TMCH-CA renewed every ten years and the renewal of the related TMV occurs every five years.

As the SMD file is a versatile instrument that will allow you to register domain names during the sunrise period of new gTLDs and request other services, it is important to protect the authenticity and trustworthiness of this document.

The Trademark Clearinghouse Certificate Authority (TMCH-CA) which is operated by ICANN provides digital certificates to the Trademark Clearinghouse (TradeMark Validator -TMV certificate) which are used to sign & encrypt the SMD (Signed Mark Data) file. This is necessary to proof the heritage and ownership of the SMD file, meaning: did the SMD file actually come from the Trademark Clearinghouse. All Signed Mark Data (SMD) files generated by the Trademark Clearinghouse are signed under the TMCH-CA.

When the SMD file is presented to a third party (such as a registry or registrar), they can cryptographically decrypt and confirm the SMD file’s authenticity. Furthermore, the third party is able to confirm that the signed content was not modified since it was signed.

The Qualified Launch Program is intended to provide a mechanism for Registry Operators to register a limited number of names to third parties to promote their TLDs prior to the Sunrise Period, while maintaining safeguards against intellectual property infringement.

According to the QLP Addendum, if a domain name matches a label in the Trademark Clearinghouse (TMCH), the domain name may be registered to a Sunrise-Eligible Rights Holder, as defined in the TMCH Requirements. If a domain name does not match a label in the Trademark Clearinghouse, the domain name may be registered in a Qualified Launch Program to any third party.

For more information please refer to the ICANN website.

You need to first consult the new dot rule in the Trademark Clearinghouse Guidelines. If your trademark falls within the new dot rule requirements, you can send a service request to the customer support to re-correct the mark.

Trademarks registered according to an accelerated procedure, such as in the Benelux, will be accepted in the Trademark Clearinghouse if they meet the verification requirements of these Guidelines, but in the event these trademarks have been submitted to the Clearinghouse before the examination of the absolute grounds by the relevant trademark office and the end of the opposition period, these trademarks will be verified again by the verification agents of the Trademark Clearinghouse at the end of the opposition period. In the event the trademark should no longer be protected at the time of the re-verification, it will be deemed invalid by the Trademark Clearinghouse.

No, the Claims Period lasts during the first 90 days of General Availability. A Limited Registration Period is by definition a registration period in which the Registry Operator has imposed additional registration restrictions beyond the registration policies of the TLD’s General Availability. Thus, a Limited Registration Period cannot occur at the same time as the Claims Period/General Availability.

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A Limited Registration Period is any registration period between the end of the Sunrise Period and the start of General Availability period. Thus, a Limited Registration Period has must have some registration restrictions that limits domain names from being generally available to all registrants that are qualified to register domain names within the TLD. Any registration during a Limited Registration Period must be subject to the Claims Service in the same manner as the registrations registered or allocated during the Claims Period.

Yes. A Registry Operator may not process registrations of domain names during a Sunrise Period unless the registration is accompanied by a valid Signed Mark Data (SMD) file issued by the Trademark Clearinghouse.

The Trademark Clearinghouse in itself is not a trademark office. If you want your trademark to become a registered trademark, it is best to contact your local trademark office or agent to find out how. You can only include your brand in the Trademark Clearinghouse after it is officially registered as a trademark. Apart from registered trademarks, the Clearinghouse also accepts marks protected by treaty or statute, or court-validated marks.

For more information on the Abused DNL fee structure please refer to the detailed Fee Structure for the Clearinghouse.

 

 

 

Abused labels in which the trademark is simply included could be submitted to the Clearinghouse as long as they meet all the eligibility requirements mentioned on the Clearinghouse webiste.

No, there will be different prices made available for a UDRP case and a court case.

The verification agents of the Clearinghouse will verify that (1) the name of the trademark included in the trademark record matches the name of the trademark in the case, (2) the registration/reference number provided in the trademark record matches the registration/reference number of the trademark mentioned in the case, (3) the jurisdiction/country of protection in the trademark record matches the jurisdiction/country of protection of the trademark mentioned in the case and (4) the abused labels provided in the Clearinghouse matches the abused labels mentioned in the case.

You will have to provide the name of the court, the reference number of the court case, the language of the court case, a copy of the court case and the abused labels.

Yes, the court that has rendered the decision about the abused label(s) will have to be a national court.

Yes, the UDRP case must have been rendered by an ICANN approved service provider.

No, you will be able to add labels included in different court decisions and/or UDRP cases with a maximum of 50 labels in total per trademark record.

The abused labels will not be included in the SMD file but you will receive claims notifications related to these abused labels.

You will be able to add up to 50 abused labels per trademark record.  These abused labels may be added on the basis of the UDRP case or court cases.

Our Sunrise service allows tademark holders an advance opportunity to register domain names corresponding to their marks before domain names are generally available to the public. New gTLD registries are required to offer a Sunrise period for at least 30 days.

The Trademark Claims period follows the Sunrise period and runs for at least the first 90 days of an initial operating period of the General Availability period. During the Trademark Claims period, anyone attempting to register a domain name matching a mark that is recorded registered and verified in the Trademark Clearinghouse will receive a notification displaying the relevant mark information.

If the notified party goes ahead and registers the domain name, the Trademark Clearinghouse will send a notice to those trademark holders with matching records in the Clearinghouse, informing them that someone has registered the domain name.

Trademarks subjected to successful cancellation or invalidation procedures are not eligible for acceptance into the Clearinghouse. For further details on eligibility requirements, please refer to the Trademark Clearinghouse Guidelines provided on this website.

Trademarks subjected to successful rectification proceedings are ineligible for acceptance into the Clearinghouse. For further details on eligibility requirements, please refer to the Trademark Clearinghouse Guidelines provided on this website.

No, this is not possible. Trademarks with the same name but registered in a different jurisdiction by the Trademark Holder will be treated as separate and independent trademark records. This will mean that if you want, for instance, to submit to the Clearinghouse a Trademark registered in France and in the United Kingdom, you will have to submit two separate and independent records: one for the Trademark registered in France and one for the Trademark registered in the United Kingdom.

No, State trademarks are not eligible for registration in the Clearinghouse as trademarks need to be at least of national effect in order to be accepted in the Clearinghouse. Trademarks registered by a city, state, province, or sub-national system will therefore not be accepted in the Clearinghouse. You can find more information about the Clearinghouse eligibility requirements in the Trademark Clearinghouse Guidelines.

No, trademarks that are currently under application will not be accepted in the Clearinghouse. You can find more information about the Clearinghouse eligibility requirements in the Trademark Clearinghouse Guidelines.

Yes, trademarks containing numbers can be accepted by the Clearinghouse. You can find more information about the Clearinghouse eligibility requirements in the Trademark Clearinghouse Guidelines available on this website.

Deloitte will performs the verification of the correctness and completeness of the submitted trademark record information (the assessment of whether trademark records meet the eligibility requirements as stated by the Trademark Clearinghouse). Deloitte also provides the Clearinghouse User Interface. IBM is the provider of the central database in which all the trademark information will be stored.

At this moment, you can submit to the Clearinghouse (1) registered trademarks, (2) court-validated marks, and (3) marks protected by treaty or statute. In the future, the Clearinghouse may agree with registries to process other types of marks, such as company names. This is however, currently not the case.

The term “domain name” is a name consisting of two or more levels, such as, “trademark-clearinghouse.com”. A label is a part of a domain name, such as, “trademark-clearinghouse” from the domain name “trademark-clearinghouse.com”.

Well known or famous non registered trademarks can be accepted in the Clearinghouse provided that the Trademark Holder can submit to the Clearinghouse a court order providing for such protection. Such trademark must be recorded under the trademark type “court validated mark”.

No, Trademark Agents are also eligible to submit a trademark on behalf of the trademark owner. Trademark Agents are entities or individuals authorized to act on behalf of a Trademark Holder who has agreed to the Clearinghouse Terms and Conditions for Trademark Agents.

Yes, every new gTLD is required by ICANN to organize a Sunrise Period of at least 30 days before domain names are offered to the general public.

Yes, trademarks in IDN characters (Internationalized Domain Names) are accepted.

Yes, trademarks in both Latin, and non-Latin script, are accepted.