3501 Advertising

Practice notes (J&C)

This group is advertising services provided for others: advertising planning, advertising design, advertising agency, dissemination and rental of advertising materials, arranging commercial window displays, presentation of goods on communication media for retail purposes, etc. A company promoting its own goods is not providing advertising services and cannot rely on this to prove use of a service mark (practical tip, per the general rules on trademark use).

Difference from 3503: 3501 is “making advertisements”, while 3503 “sales promotion for others” and “marketing” is sales promotion; advertising agencies usually cover both groups, and e-commerce platforms focus on 3503 (practical tip).

In 2026 the note to Class 38 was changed to “This class does not include, in particular: online advertising on a computer network, radio advertising, television advertising (Class 35)”, again making clear that advertising services on every medium are in this group, not in Class 38. No additions or deletions to this group in 2026; there are no official notes.

Applies to the 2026 edition · Published 2026-10-09 · Reviewed 2026-10-09