Trademark class 9: software & electronics

What class 9 covers

Scientific, research, navigation, surveying, photographic, cinematographic, audiovisual, optical, weighing, measuring, signalling, detecting, testing, inspecting, life-saving and teaching apparatus and instruments; apparatus and instruments for conducting, switching, transforming, accumulating, regulating or controlling the distribution or use of electricity; apparatus and instruments for recording, transmitting, reproducing or processing sound, images or data; recorded and downloadable media, computer software, blank digital or analogue recording and storage media; mechanisms for coin-operated apparatus; cash registers, calculating devices; computers and computer peripheral devices; diving suits, divers' masks, ear plugs for divers, nose clips for divers and swimmers, gloves for divers, breathing apparatus for underwater swimming; fire-extinguishing apparatus.

Software and app developers, electronics and hardware makers, scientific instrument manufacturers, and safety equipment brands.

Classes confused with class 9

• Class 42, technology & science: Software as a service. Downloaded software and apps are class 9 goods; software customers access online without installing, such as SaaS and PaaS, is a class 42 service. The distinction is delivery, not function.
• Class 28, games & toys: Games and toys. Video game controllers, game consoles and toy robots are class 28; class 9 covers downloadable game software and joysticks for computers rather than video games.
• Class 10, medical devices: Medical monitoring devices. Pulse meters, heart-rate monitors and surgical robots are class 10; general fitness trackers and smartwatches stay in class 9.
• Class 25, clothing & footwear: Smart products. Wearables whose main function is electronic, like smartwatches, are class 9; smart products whose main function stays the same, such as smart clothing or smart refrigerators, keep their usual class.

Classes filed alongside class 9

• Class 42, technology & science: The SaaS or cloud side of the product; most software brands need both.
• Class 35, advertising & business: Retail or marketplace services built around the product.
• Class 41, education & entertainment: Online courses, streaming content or events the brand also provides.
• Class 38, telecommunications: Telecom or data-transmission services, when the product transmits data itself.

Monitoring class 9 filings

Whatever classes your own mark is filed in, notolens scans all 45 Nice classes for conflicting filings rather than restricting monitoring to a selection. Trademark monitoring flags conflicting applications while they can still be opposed.