Trademark Wiki / 商标基础

Can a Sound Be Registered as a Trademark?

Q&APublished 2026-09-17 · Updated 2026-09-17

Yes. Since the 2013 revision of the Trademark Law, sounds have been formally included as registrable elements, but a sound mark must possess distinctiveness, be described by staff or numbered musical notation, and be accompanied by a sound sample.

A sound can be registered as a trademark. Article 8 of the Trademark Law expressly lists sounds among registrable trademark elements, and the broadcasting opening tune of China Radio International was China's first approved sound mark. However, the distinctiveness examination of sound marks is strict, and the overall approval rate is relatively low.

Legal Basis and Application Requirements

Article 8 of the Trademark Law provides that sounds may be applied for registration as trademarks. Applying for a sound mark requires:

  1. Declaring in the application that the application is for a sound mark.
  2. Submitting a compliant sound sample (an audio file, generally required to be in wav or mp3 format and within the prescribed duration limit).
  3. Describing the sound by staff notation or numbered musical notation with additional textual explanation; where the sound cannot be described by musical notation, it must be accurately described in words.
  4. The trademark description must be consistent with the sound sample.

Distinctiveness Examination

The core threshold for sound marks remains distinctiveness:

  • Likely to be registered: original melodies or tone combinations unrelated to the goods or services themselves, such as Intel's "bong" jingle.
  • Unlikely to be registered: natural sounds emitted by the goods themselves (such as an alarm ringtone applied for on alarm clocks), industry-generic sound effects, and overly simple single tones — usually found to lack distinctive character.
  • Acquired distinctiveness: a sound originally lacking distinctiveness may be registered if, through long-term and extensive use, the relevant public can identify the source by it — but the evidentiary burden is very high.

Current Practice in China

Since the sound mark regime was implemented, applications have been considerable but approvals limited; well-known cases such as the classic Nokia ringtone and the Tencent QQ message notification sound mostly obtained registration only after refusal review or even administrative litigation. In practice, unless a sound has already formed strong recognition in the market, it is not advisable to treat it as the primary object of protection; it may instead serve as a supplementary layout alongside word and device marks.

If you are unsure about the above issues, you may first run a trademark registrability assessment on MyTMBee and act after obtaining analysis from a CNIPA-recorded trademark agent.