‘Bitcoin’ Becomes Trademark in Russia to Prevent 'Patent Trolls'

Following three unsuccessful attempts by various firms to register the “Bitcoin” trademark in Russia, the Russian patent agency, Rospatent has granted the request for LLC “Bitcoin” to Russian Blockchain.community founder, Alex Fork.

Also read: Russia’s Central Bank Officially Announces Blockchain ‘Work Group’

‘Bitcoin’ Trademark Established in Russia

Request No. 552645 to trademark the name “Bitcoin” has been granted in Russia, reported Russian media outlet Plusworld. The new rights holder of LLC “Bitcoin” is Alex Fork, a Russian cryptocurrency enthusiast and the author of Russia’s first book on Bitcoin. He is also the head of the “Future Fintech” accelerator in Moscow and the founder of Blockchain.community, a “voluntary association of enthusiasts, specialists, entrepreneurs, and services interested in studying, developing and applying blockchain technologies,” according to their website.

Fork told the publication that the trademark’s registration will be valid until December 30, 2023. However, he does not seek to profit from the trademark as he wants to “give it to the community so that businesses could use it with confidence and without fear of patent-trolls.”

In other words, Fork does not plan to use the LLC “Bitcoin” trademark for commercial purposes, according to his statements to the Russian press. In fact, the entire process of registering the trademark was deliberately done to prevent possible monopolization of the Bitcoin brand by a single entity who could then use it to profit at the expense of Russian cryptoccurency users.

Dima Starodubcev, founder of Cyber.Fund, a digital investments platform, told Bitcoin.com that he “trusts” Alex Fork and believes this will be “good” for the Russian Bitcoin community moving forward.

Previous Failed Attempts

Previously, the registration of the “Bitcoin” trademark was attempted at least three times as early as 2013. Back in March 2016, the Russian patent agency, commonly known as Rospatent, rejected a request on behalf of “M-Groupp” to register the trademark.The company filed the request in relation to the 36th and 38th classes of the International Classification of Goods and Services (NICE) for financial services and telecommunications, respectively.

Other previous requests were filed by LLC Intelprom, which was associated with former chairman of Master-Bank, Boris Bulochnik, and by LLC “Doka”, both of which were later retracted by the applicants themselves.

Now, the fourth attempt by Fork has proved to be successful as the LLC “Bitcoin” trademark is now officially registered in Russia under the 9th, 36th, 35th, and 41st classes of the International Classification of Goods and Services (NICE), which includes financial services.

Do you think this trademark will boost Bitcoin startups in Russia? Let us know in the comments sections below!

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