Cameroon is a member of the African Intellectual Property Organisation (OAPI). Under that system there is no separate national trade mark register: a single OAPI registration covers all member states simultaneously. For a business with regional ambitions this is a substantial advantage, and it is available for a fraction of what equivalent protection costs elsewhere.
What can be registered
Word marks, logos, combined marks, slogans in some circumstances, and increasingly non-traditional signs. The mark must be distinctive for the goods or services claimed, and must not conflict with an earlier right. Descriptive marks — naming what the product is — are refused or, worse, registered and then unenforceable against competitors using the ordinary word.
Get the specification right
Registration is granted for specified classes of goods and services under the Nice Classification. Two errors are common:
- Filing too narrowly, covering only today's products, so a competitor can lawfully use your brand on the adjacent category you launch next year.
- Filing a copy-paste list of everything, which invites opposition and can expose the registration to cancellation for non-use.
The right specification describes the business you will plausibly be operating within five years.
Search before you file
A pre-filing availability search is inexpensive relative to a rebrand. It should cover identical and confusingly similar marks in the relevant and neighbouring classes, and it should be run before you commission packaging, signage or a domain purchase.
Renewal and use
Registrations run for ten years and are renewable indefinitely. They are also vulnerable to cancellation if the mark has not been genuinely used. Keep dated evidence of use — invoices, packaging, advertising — in a file that can be produced years later.
Enforcement
Registration is the precondition, not the remedy. Effective enforcement in the region usually combines several tools:
- Customs recordal, so counterfeit consignments can be intercepted at the port.
- Seizure (saisie-contrefaçon) to secure evidence before the infringer can disperse stock.
- Civil infringement proceedings for injunctive relief and damages.
- Criminal complaint where the scale of counterfeiting justifies it.
Do not forget the company name
Registering a company name at the RCCM does not give you trade mark rights, and holding a trade mark does not guarantee the company name is available. Both need to be checked, and the trade mark search should be done before the company is incorporated, not after the signage is printed.
- #OAPI
- #Trade marks
- #Brand protection
- #Counterfeiting
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