By Chua Hian Hou

SINGAPORE'S intellectual property regulator has warned firms not to fall prey to official-looking letters demanding payment for registering their trademarks.

In a warning published on its website, the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (Ipos) told companies to treat such letters 'with caution'. The companies asking for payment, said Ipos, 'are neither related nor connected with Ipos. These services...are not official services (and) there is thus no obligation to pay'.

Ezypay director Goh Chuan Iau was almost conned when he got the first notice in November. He nearly paid up the US$1,500 (S$2,280) asked for as the letter 'looked very official'. He subsequently checked with his firm's lawyer, who told him not to do so. Since then, he has received four more such notices.

Keystone Law Corporation spokesman Grace Khor said dozens of the firm's clients have received such notifications in the past four months. On Tuesday, the firm sent out an e-mail warning its clients about the 'misleading' letters.

One such letter obtained by The Straits Times claimed to be from the 'International Bureau of Intellectual Property' and had a letterhead almost identical to that of the United Nations' World Intellectual Property Organisation (Wipo). It asked for &yen1,537 (S$3,107).

Another, from the 'Register of International Patents', demanded a cheque for 2,417 Swiss francs (S$3,224) to be posted to an overseas post box. Both letters, peppered with legal phrases, claimed the payment was necessary if the company wanted to register its trademark.

Ms Khor has noticed that all of Keystone's clients who have tried to register their trademarks overseas were hit. Firms that register their trademarks will have their trademarks and details published so that people who wish to object can do so.

This article was first published in The Straits Times.