Rospatent has registered VK rights to logos reminiscent of YouTube icons

Applications for registration were submitted in December 2023, the registration process was carried out without additional applications, RB.RU explained. patent attorney and founder of the Isibrand patent office Olga Bondareva.

In September, the Russian company protected the rights to the brand in pink and blue, and in October, in black and white.

“Judging by VK’s correspondence with Rospatent, the office did not send any additional applications or preliminary rejections opposing the YouTube trademark or other trademarks,” Bondareva explained (the patent attorney can see the correspondence of the parties).

According to Bondareva, once registered, trademarks can only be used in Russia by VK. The manufacturer or importer may be fined 5 million rubles under article 1515 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation (liability for illegal use of a trademark, if this logo is present on sound recording devices or media storage, cannot be used for software); any.

Bondareva believes that the VK logos are similar to elements used by YouTube, including those protected in the Russian Federation at the request of Google, but this option is possible in Russia.

“The logo may be similar to someone else’s trademark, the rights to which have already been obtained by another company. Therefore, the “VK Video” icon is very reminiscent of the YouTube video hosting logo, which is also protected in Russia as a trademark. No one will be able to “reframe” a second identical triangle on a red background, as this could mislead consumers. But if it has a different and more original graphic design or color combination, then you can obtain a registered trademark,” says the expert.

The positive examination decision may be influenced by the applicant’s fame in the Russian Federation, but large corporations are also denied registration, the patent lawyer adds. For example, in 2020, Rospatent rejected an application for the Yandex Translator trademark for some services. Yandex lawyers had to contact the Patent Disputes Chamber to obtain registration. The lawyer is sure that a simple businessman will find it more difficult to do this.

“The review decision will largely depend on how the average consumer perceives similar logos. And if the color logo of VK differs noticeably from the red “button” of YouTube and other similar posters, then the black and white logo already raises questions,” says Bondareva.

As RB.RU explains corporate lawyer Yulia BondarenkoVKontakte LLC is an experienced copyright holder, it is unlikely that Google will be able to challenge Rospatent’s decision.

“VKontakte is a fairly frequent guest in court and its practice is mostly positive. They receive decisions in their favor, even when they are accused,” says the lawyer. Bondarenko added that there are no doubts about the issuance of trademark certificates, since Rospatent has been carrying out inspections for a long time.

According creative director of the Title Office Vadim DunaevThe logos are similar and different at the same time.

“A triangle pointing to the right is a common sign for the Play function. A standard element that is immediately clear to everyone. Therefore, it is logical that VK Video includes this icon in its logo. At the same time, the company tried to avoid resemblance to YouTube as much as possible. Added blue – here there is a reference to VK’s corporate color and the combination as a whole is reminiscent of the colors of the Russian flag. The designer wanted to highlight the scale of the service,” says Dunaev.

YouTube traffic in the Russian Federation after the “slowdown” dropped by half, according to a CDN Video study published by RBC on September 20 (“slowdown began in August 2024”). According to the study, traffic was redistributed to VK Video (39%), Yandex (17%), Rutube and Ivi (8% each), Okko (6%). Another 22% of users hope that “they will be approached by someone who offers them a good service.” In addition, a significant part of the traffic was moved “to foreign hosting.”

On August 29, amid the YouTube slowdown, news broke about a new VK video development. The company has combined video content from VK Video, Zen and OK.Video platforms into cloud storage based on the development of a cloud for more than 1.5 billion gigabytes. The company noted that it is the largest among national platforms.