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El Salvador Issues Provisional Measure Limiting Exclusive Rights Over Black Friday
By Eproint
El Salvador’s Intellectual Property Institute, part of the National Registry Center (CNR), announced that the Consumer Protection Authority has filed a request for a provisional measure within the administrative proceeding for cancellation due to generalization of the commercial advertising expression Black Friday, registered in favor of Unión Comercial de El Salvador, S.A. de C.V. (UNICOMER). The request was submitted on October 6, 2025, in accordance with the Intellectual Property Law and its regulations.
After verifying compliance with the applicable legal provisions, the Institute issued a resolution dated October 23, 2025, ordering the following:
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A provisional measure is decreed, consisting of the temporary and non-definitive limitation of the scope of the distinctive sign “BLACK FRIDAY and design,” specifically regarding its denominative element “BLACK FRIDAY.”
The expression is registered under number 00248, book 00007 of commercial advertising expressions or signs, folios 497–498, dated July 27, 2010, in favor of UNICOMER. -
It is noted that UNICOMER’s rights apply solely to the design of the commercial advertising expression—particularly its typography and visual arrangement—and do not extend to the generic term “BLACK FRIDAY.”
The term may be freely used by consumers and providers during the ongoing administrative procedure. -
A preventive annotation is to be recorded in the registry and entered as a marginal note reflecting these limitations.
The Institute also issued a certification confirming that the commercial advertising expression “BLACK FRIDAY and design” remains registered under file number 2009097693 and presentation number 20090130402. The certification includes the following marginal annotation dated October 23, 2025:
“Regarding the denominative part ‘BLACK FRIDAY,’ which translates to ‘viernes negro,’ exclusivity is provisionally not recognized due to the active generalization procedure, based on a preliminary analysis indicating that it is a term of common or necessary use in commerce, in accordance with the Intellectual Property Law.”
The registration continues to list Unión Comercial de El Salvador, S.A. de C.V. (UNICOMER) as the holder of the expression.
Eproint
Whether your company is big or small, at Eproint you are our priority and we can take care of everything regarding legal processes to create and protect your brands, and provide you with an Intellectual Property strategy to achieve your goals.
In El Salvador, Practice Head Edy Guadalupe Portal is a partner at Eproint and has more than 25 years of experience in Intellectual Property. Since 1995, she has been recognized as the Salvadoran voice of Intellectual Property protection for always informing the IP community about changes to IP law and international treaties.
During her career, Mrs. Portal has helped numerous international law firms and in-house counsel with all facets of their IP matters in El Salvador and Central America. Her extensive practice includes work in trademarks, patents, industrial designs, utility models, copyrights, unfair competition, foreign investment, regulatory law/health registrations, licensing, franchising, appellations of origin, geographical indications, IP litigation, fashion law, new technologies, data privacy, cybersecurity, domain names, entertainment law, advertisement law, trade secrets, valuation of intangibles, and IP due diligence. She is also recognized for the great anti-piracy and anti-counterfeiting results she has delivered for her clients. She also helps coordinate Latin America Intellectual Property Protection for the firm.
