In the recently concluded 2024 convention on Generative AI: IP and Output, the esteemed presenters discussed where artificial intelligence (AI) fits in the intellectual property landscape. In the Philippines, the Intellectual Property Code (IP Code)1 protects intellectual property rights and provides the guidelines for such protection, but how does our current legal framework address the ever-increasing effects of AI on innovation and creativity?
This article will guide you in understanding the key insights on the impact of AI on trademark law in the Philippines.
AI and Trademark: At a Glance
The rise of AI has profoundly impacted several fields, including intellectual property (IP). Its influence is evident in nearly every aspect of our lives, from reshaping employment to how we enjoy leisure activities. However, AI's transformative effects are particularly significant in business and commerce, placing trademark laws at the forefront of this evolution.
Undeniably, AI has already revolutionized trademarking practices and will continue to do so in the future. For instance, platforms like Trademark Now leverage AI to analyze trademark applications, enabling faster and more accurate trademark searches compared to traditional methods. This shift is a testament to the importance of understanding the impact of AI on trademark laws today.
3 Key Insights on AI’s Impact on Trademark Law
Before one can enforce trademark rights, the owner must first comply with the legal requirements to acquire a trademark:
1. AI-generated content in trademark protection
Now that generative AI tools create content in almost any medium, one challenge confronts the legal system today: most trademark laws were created without considering generative AI.2 This follows that we do not have the legal framework that can sufficiently address issues stemming from generative AI.
For example, what if one business designs a mark using AI? Will the design by AI comply with the requisite distinctiveness that the law requires? Accordingly, an amendment to the existing IP Code is necessary to expand the term “mark” to encompass the unique ability of AI to design such marks. To learn more about other unusual trademarks, check out Can Colors and Sounds be Trademarked? 3 Unusual Trademarks Explained.
2. AI’s influence on trademark infringement
A few AI-based E-commerce platforms are manipulating brands using an algorithm that suggests similarity or confusion on trademarks.3 For example, when a certain brand keyword is used on a brand website, there’s a possibility that a Google search engine will redirect the link to a different website selling similar products but from a different business, creating among consumers “likelihood or confusion”.4 This poses a significant risk in trademark infringement cases, as our IP Code lacks the sufficient mechanism to address AI algorithms resulting in the likelihood of infringement.
3. AI on the customers’ purchase behavior
Since businesses generally thrive or perish depending on their reputation among customers,5 trademarks are the pinnacle of customers’ trust. With the presence of AI, however, customers are subjected to the available information about products on sale resulting the the use of an AI application. This affects how customers see businesses and their goodwill and reputation.6
Conclusion
AI has already revolutionized trademarking practices and will continue to do so in the future. For instance, platforms like Trademark Now leverage AI to analyze trademark applications, enabling faster and more accurate trademark searches compared to traditional methods. This shift underscores how AI is redefining efficiency and precision in the realm of intellectual property.
1 An Act Prescribing the Intellectual PropertyCode and Establishing the Intellectual Property Office, Providing for itsPowers and Functions, and for other Purposes, Republic Act No. 8293, §1(January 1, 1998) [hereinafter Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines].
2 WIPO Conversation – AI Inventions
3 ARTIFICIAL_INTELLIGENCE_COLLIDES_WITH_TRDEMARK_LAW.pdf
4 Id.
5 Zuneca Pharmaceutical v. Natrapharm, Inc. G.R. No.211850, September 8, 2020.
6 Trademark Law Playing Catch-up with Artificial Intelligence?
