和特朗普“撞名”的马桶背后，中国的商标乱象
BEIJING — The founder of a Chinese brand of high-tech toilets called Trump said he had no intention of soiling the name of America’s next president.
北京——一个名为“创普”(Trump)的中国高科技马桶品牌创始人说，自己无意玷污美国下一任总统的名字。
Zhong Jiye, the founder, said he had not heard of Donald J. Trump when he registered the English name of his company, Shenzhen Trump Industrial Company Limited, as a trademark in 2002. In Chinese, the company name means “innovate universally,” he said, highlighting how the toilet seats warm and wash the user’s backside. That Chinese name, he explained, also sounds a little like “trump.”
这位名叫钟继业的创始人说，2002年，他为自己的“深圳创普实业有限公司”注册英文名“Trump”时，还没有听说过唐纳德·J·特朗普(Donald J. Trump)其人。公司中文名称的意思是“普适的创新”，意在强调他们的马桶座可以这样温暖并清洗用户的臀部。他解释说，这个中文名字发音有点像“trump”。
“We really didn’t know of this person called Trump,” Mr. Zhong said in a telephone interview from the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen. “It was entirely a coincidence.”
“因为我们确实是不知道，就是说不知道有特朗普这么个人，”钟继业在中国南方城市深圳接受电话采访时说。 “完全是属于巧合而已。”
In the United States, Mr. Trump’s name has adorned ties, steaks, water and other products. In China, it is found on computers, cosmetics, even leather goods.
在美国，特朗普的名字出现在领带、牛排、饮用水和其他产品上。在中国，它被用于电脑、化妆品，乃至皮革制品。
The difference: Many such Chinese products don’t have the president-elect’s permission.
区别是，许多这样的中国产品没有获得这位候任总统的授权许可。
Of the 46 registered trademarks under the Trump name in China, 29 appear to be owned by Mr. Trump, based on data with the country’s trademark office. At least 14 companies not associated with Mr. Trump applied for the Trump trademark in 2015 and 2016 alone, according to Itaotm, a Chinese commercial trademark website.
根据中国商标局的数据，在中国的46个以“Trump”为名的注册商标中，似乎只有29个是由特朗普本人所拥有的。根据中国商标商务网站爱淘标(Itaotm)的统计，仅在2015年和2016年便有至少14家和特朗普没有关系的公司申请了“Trump”商标。
The situation highlights the difficulties that big brands and celebrities face as they navigate the country’s relatively new trademark laws.
这种情况凸显了在这个国家相对较新的商标法面前，大品牌和名人所面临的困境。
In China, trademarks are generally awarded to those who are first to file with the government. That has given rise to a crush of people registering the names of well-known brands, in a practice known as “trademark squatting.”
在中国，商标使用权一般会授给最先向政府提交申请的人。这导致人们愈发狂热地把知名品牌的名字抢先注册下来，这种行为被称为“商标抢注”。
Many Western companies like Apple and Starbucks have been caught up in long legal battles to win the right to use their names in China.
包括苹果(Apple)和星巴克(Starbucks)在内的许多西方公司为了赢得在中国使用自己名字的权利，已经陷入漫长的诉讼战 。
In May, a Chinese company won the right to sell its leather goods under the iPhone trademark after years of legal wrangling with Apple. Michael Jordan lost the rights to the name he is known by in China. New Balance paid $16 million in damages for what a court said was the illegal use of the Chinese name for the company, which a person had trademarked.
今年5月，一家中国公司在持续数年的官司中战胜了苹果公司， 获得了以“iPhone”为商标销售该公司皮革制品的权利。迈克尔·乔丹(Michael Jordan)失去了自己在中国广为人知的中文名的使用权。 一个法院判定New Balance公司违法使用了已被他人注册的“新百伦”这个中文名字，New Banlance公司为此支付了1600万美元的赔偿。
“It’s very difficult to prove bad faith,” said Matthew Dresden, a lawyer with Harris Moure in Seattle who specializes in Chinese intellectual property law. “It’s very hard to prove that your name is well known at the time that the application is filed.”
“主观恶意是非常难以证明的，”位于西雅图的哈里斯·摩尔(Harris Moure)律师事务所专门负责中国知识产权法的律师马修·德累斯顿(Matthew Dresden) 说。 “很难证明你品牌的名字在抢注者申请提交时是众所周知的。”
Mr. Trump has fought at least once to get his name back. In 2015, he lost a legal battle against a businessman in the northern province of Liaoning, Dong Wei, to prevent him from using the Trump name for a construction company, according to a website run by China’s Supreme Court. Then the decision was reversed. A notice issued on China’s trademark office website on Sunday said that Mr. Trump’s trademark had been granted preliminary approval for use in construction services. The Wall Street Journal reported the decision on Monday.
为了赢回自己的名字，特朗普已经至少打过一次官司了。根据中国最高法院的官方网站，2015年，他曾起诉中国北部辽宁省一个名叫董伟的商人，试图阻止后者把自己的建筑公司命名为“Trump”，诉讼最后以特朗普败诉告终。但是这个结果最终得以扭转。周日，中国商标局网站的一则通知显示，特朗普本人的商标已初步获得批准，用于建筑服务。 《华尔街日报》于周一报道了此事。
Alan Garten, general counsel of the Trump Organization, did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
特朗普集团的法律总顾问阿兰·加腾(Alan Garten)没有立即回复请求置评的电子邮件。
Mr. Trump isn’t the first world leader wrapped up in a name dispute in China.
特朗普先生不是第一个在中国陷入姓名纠纷的外国领导人。
In 2004, the country’s government officials were not favorably inclined when a Chinese businessman tried to register the Chinese name of former President George W. Bush for a brand of disposable diapers. The officials said the application was likely to be rejected “because it may bring about bad social impact if a leader’s name is registered as a trademark,” according to state media.
2004年，一个中国商人申请将美国前总统乔治·W ·布什(George W Bush)的中文名作为自己尿不湿产品的商标，中国政府官员对此表示不能赞同。据国有媒体的报道，官员们说，这个申请很可能遭到拒绝，因为“类似这样的使用国家领导人或其他知名人士的姓名注册商标……有可能带来不良的社会影响” 。
Mr. Zhong, of the toilet maker Shenzhen Trump, said he had not received a challenge from Mr. Trump or his company. Still, he said, he “will never” give up his trademark easily, if Mr. Trump decides to sue.
深圳的Trump牌马桶制造商钟继业说，他没有收到特朗普或其公司的异议。不过，他说，如果特朗普决定起诉，他也“绝不会”放弃自己的商标。
“Litigating is his right,” Mr. Zhong said. “But we will let the government make its judgment. We believe the country’s laws will protect businesses like us.”
“起诉是他的一个权利，”钟继业说。 “如果他起诉我们，肯定从法律上可以由政府去判断这个情况吧。因为我相信我们国家的法律会保护好我们企业的。”
Mr. Zhong said he approved of Mr. Trump’s “courageous style and spirit of reform.” He also liked Mr. Trump’s “innovative ideas.”
钟继业说，他认可特朗普“果敢的作风与改革的精神”。他还喜欢特朗普的“创新理念”。
When asked about the criticism directed toward Mr. Trump in the United States, Mr. Zhong said, “Democratic countries are like that. I think a transformation is not bad at all.”
当被问及特朗普在美国受到的批评时，钟继业说：“民主国家这样正常的。我认为这个转型都还不错。”
