Online brand monitoring means regularly scanning how your brand is used on the internet, in marketplace listings, social media accounts, ads and domain names, and recording each finding with evidence. Trademark bulletin watching, in Türkiye, means reviewing the new applications TÜRKPATENT publishes in its Official Trademark Bulletin; it is what makes it possible to oppose a similar application within two months of publication. Bulletin watching is mostly offered by trademark attorneys. The two protect the same right from different angles: one looks at signs trying to get onto the register, the other at use in the market.
What does bulletin watching cover?
The Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (TÜRKPATENT) publishes trademark applications in the Official Trademark Bulletin, available on the Bulletins page of its website. Watching the bulletin means checking each new issue for applications that look or sound like your client's mark, and deciding whether to oppose.
The window is short. Under Article 18 of the Industrial Property Code (Law No. 6769), interested parties may oppose a published application on the grounds in Articles 5 or 6 within two months of publication. The opposition is filed with the Office in writing and with reasons; the reasons and the fee must also be submitted within that period, otherwise the opposition is treated as not filed. Article 28 of the implementing regulation adds that the opposition is made on a signed opposition form setting out the grounds in detail, with references to the relevant provisions.
Bulletin watching is therefore register work that calls for trademark law expertise and ends in an opposition. The question it answers is: should this sign be registered?
What does online brand monitoring cover?
Online monitoring looks at the market, not the register. A marketplace store using your brand name, a social media profile imitating your official account, a look-alike domain or an ad promising discounts under your name usually never files a trademark application, so it never appears in the bulletin.
The question here is different: where is my brand being used right now, by whom and how? The output is not an opposition but an evidence file, with the listing link, a screenshot, a timestamp and the seller's details, which is then used in a platform complaint, a cease-and-desist letter or a lawsuit. The channels worth covering are listed in which channels should digital brand protection cover?.
How do they differ?
| Trademark bulletin watching | Online brand monitoring | |
|---|---|---|
| What it watches | New trademark applications in the bulletin | Listings, accounts, ads and domains |
| Source | Official Trademark Bulletin and the register | Marketplaces, social media, ad libraries, domain records |
| Time pressure | Two-month opposition period from publication | Capturing evidence before a listing comes down |
| Typical outcome | Opposition to publication | Platform complaint, cease-and-desist letter, lawsuit if needed |
| Usually provided by | Trademark attorneys | Online brand-monitoring platforms |
| Who decides | Right holder and trademark attorney | Right holder and its lawyer or trademark attorney |
How do you tell which one you need?
This sequence helps separate the two needs:
- Map your registrations. In which countries and classes is your mark registered or pending? That list defines the scope of bulletin watching.
- List your sales channels. Which marketplaces, social accounts and websites sell your products? That list defines the scope of online monitoring.
- Look at where the problem is. Are you worried about competitors filing similar marks, or about fake listings, impersonating accounts and unauthorized sellers?
- Ask your trademark attorney. Clarify what their watching and opposition service covers: which classes and which similarity criteria.
- Define the online scope. Put in writing which channels are scanned, how often, and who receives the findings.
- Bring both outputs into one file. If a seller found online has also filed a trademark application, or an applicant spotted in the bulletin has started selling online, both teams should look at the same case.
For most brands the answer is "both", because they cover different risks.
How do they work together?
Take a typical case: online monitoring finds a marketplace store trading under a name close to your brand. It may turn out the store owner has also applied to register that name. Online monitoring brings evidence of the sales, bulletin watching brings details of the application, and the trademark attorney weighs the opposition and the platform complaint together.
It can run the other way, too. Someone whose application appeared in the bulletin may start selling online before registration. Online monitoring records that use and adds it to the attorney's file as evidence.
The roles are clear: online monitoring prepares the evidence and the report; the right holder or its trademark attorney runs the opposition, the complaint and any lawsuit.
What to look for when you search for "brand monitoring"
Because "brand monitoring" is used for both services, first decide which one you need. For bulletin watching and oppositions, work with a registered trademark attorney; TÜRKPATENT's attorney search lets you look up registered patent and trademark attorneys by city or name. For online monitoring, ask:
- Which marketplaces, social platforms, ad libraries and domain records are covered?
- Does every finding come with a source link, a screenshot and a timestamp?
- Are findings checked against your authorized seller list?
- Is the report laid out so your lawyer can use it directly?
- Who files the complaint, and is that stated clearly?
How monitoring turns a finding into an outcome is covered in brand monitoring vs brand protection.
Where does Authex fit?
Authex is our product, and it sits on the online monitoring side. Authex is an online brand-monitoring platform that detects unauthorised use of a brand across marketplaces, social media, ads and domains, collects the evidence and reports it. For each finding it prepares the evidence file and a notice draft for legal review; the brand's team or its lawyer decides whether to file it and files it.
Authex also searches the databases of nine trademark offices, including TÜRKPATENT, EUIPO and WIPO, for records that look, sound or are spelt like your mark, at the frequency you choose (from daily to yearly), and gives each result a confidence score and a risk level. That search feeds your trademark attorney's file; the decision to oppose and the filing belong to your trademark and patent attorney. See trademark and patent monitoring.
Frequently asked questions
Does bulletin watching catch counterfeit listings?
No. A counterfeit seller rarely files a trademark application, so it does not show up in the bulletin. Finding listings takes online monitoring.
How long is the opposition period?
Under Article 18 of Law No. 6769, an application published in the bulletin can be opposed within two months of publication. The reasons and the fee must be submitted within the same period.
Who can file an opposition?
The law says "interested parties". The right holder can file itself or through a trademark attorney; since the grounds must cite the relevant provisions, it makes sense to plan this step with an attorney.
Does online monitoring replace a trademark attorney?
It complements one. Online monitoring prepares the evidence and the report; the assessment and the decision to oppose, complain or sue belong to the right holder and its attorney.
This article is general information, not legal advice. For deadlines and procedures, rely on TÜRKPATENT's current guidance and your trademark attorney.
