The Madrid system for the international registration of marks (the Madrid system) established in 1891 functions under the Madrid Agreement (1891), and the Madrid Protocol (1989). It is administered by the International Bureau of WIPO located in Geneva, Switzerland.
Thanks to the international procedural mechanism, the Madrid system offers a trademark owner the possibility to have his trademark protected in several countries
(Members of the Madrid
Union) by simply filing one application directly with his own national or regional trademark office. An international mark so registered is equivalent to an application or a registration of the same mark effected directly in each of the countries designated by the applicant. If the trademark office of a designated country does not refuse protection within a specified period, the protection of the mark is the same as if it had been registered by that Office.
The Madrid system also simplifies greatly the subsequent management of the mark, since it is possible to record subsequent changes or to renew the registration through a single procedural step. Further countries may be designated subsequently.
Warning
On several occasions, the attention of the International Bureau has been drawn to the fact that certain
organizations are sending letters to the owners of international registrations, inviting them to register their marks in publications which appear to be of an
official nature. The International Bureau warns the owners of international registrations and their agents that such a publication has
absolutely no legal effect in regard to the protection of the said marks and is therefore unnecessary.
The
third issue of the WIPO Newsletter on Marks, Industrial Designs &
Geographical Indications is now