Trademark Class 38 in Nepal: Telecommunications Explained

Trademark Class 38 in Nepal covers telecommunications services: carrying calls, messages, data and broadcasts, and giving people access to networks. You file it at the Department of Industry (DoI), one application per class. IP Sewa's bulletin archive holds 705 published Class 38 marks, and fewer than three in ten have a Nepali owner.

Key takeaways

• WIPO's heading for Class 38 is simply "Telecommunications services."
• It protects carrying or connecting a communication, not the device, app or programme.
• Phones, routers and downloadable apps sit in Class 9, programmes in Class 41, software and telecom consulting in Class 42.
• Nepal has published 705 Class 38 marks, rank 26 of the 45 classes; only 29% have a Nepali owner.
• Each class needs its own application under Sec. 18A, and a trademark is not a telecom licence.
• A registration lasts seven years from registration and is renewable any number of times.

What does trademark Class 38 cover in Nepal?

The current NICE classification, 13th edition, version 2026, gives Class 38 a four-word heading: "Telecommunications services." WIPO's explanatory note says the class mainly covers services that let at least one party communicate with another, plus the broadcasting and transmission of data.

Its core examples include email and file transmission, internet access, radio and television broadcasting, video-on-demand transmission, online forums, voice mail and videoconferencing. The full text is on WIPO's Nice Classification page.

Under Sec. 2(c) of the Patent, Design and Trade Mark Act 1965, a trademark can be a word, symbol or picture used in "products or services" to distinguish them from others. So an internet provider or broadcaster registers its service brand just as a manufacturer registers a product name.

Which services does WIPO list in Class 38?

The 2026 list holds 50 indications. Grouped by the kind of business that uses them, they look like this:

Your application should describe the services you really provide. Copying all 50 lines makes a filing harder to defend, not stronger.

WIPO's 2027 version takes effect on 1 January 2027. In Class 38 it renames "news agency services" as "transmission of news by news agencies" and adds virtual-reality conference rooms for work collaboration. Ask the DoI which wording it accepts when you file.

What does Class 38 not cover?

WIPO's exclusions matter most. The content carried is not Class 38: downloadable image files go to Class 9, business information on a website to Class 35, and films or programmes supplied by video-on-demand to Class 41.

Nor are services that merely run over a network. Online advertising and telemarketing are Class 35, online banking Class 36, programme production Class 41, telecommunications technology consultancy Class 42, and online social networking Class 45.

Hardware is a product. Class 9 lists computer network routers and downloadable software applications, so a brand selling its own devices or app needs that class too.

Is streaming a Class 38 or a Class 41 service?

Often both. "Streaming of data" and "video-on-demand transmission" are Class 38 indications, because they describe moving the signal. "Providing films, not downloadable, via video-on-demand services" is a Class 41 indication, because it describes the entertainment itself.

So a Nepali OTT platform that streams its own shows would usually look at Class 38 for the transmission and Class 41 for the programmes. Our Class 41 guide covers the content side, and the Class 9 guide covers apps and devices.

How many Class 38 marks has Nepal published?

IP Sewa's archive of 123 bulletins, from Volume 1, Number 1 (22 January 2006) to Volume 20, Number 8 (16 October 2026), holds 705 Class 38 entries. That is about 1% of all 71,842 published marks and rank 26 of the 45 classes.

Among the 11 service classes it ranks seventh, behind Classes 35, 43, 41, 42, 36 and 39. In the 12 latest issues by date it took 86 of 9,652 entries, roughly its long-run share.

Filings have grown steadily. The class averaged about 20 marks a year in its first decade, more than doubled after 2016, and reached 75 in 2023. These are published bulletin entries, not registrations confirmed by the DoI.

Who owns Nepal's Class 38 marks?

Mostly foreign owners. Of the 705 entries, 204 (29%) show an owner address in Nepal, against 60% across the register. The United States follows closely with 172, then China (62) and India (42), out of 38 countries.

Grouped by owner name, so address variants count once, the class has about 370 owners, and around three in five hold just one mark. The busiest companies:

You can list any company's marks with the owner search, or browse the class with search by NICE class.

Which Nepali telecom and media brands are on the register?

Ncell leads. Its marks appear under two names, Ncell Pvt. Ltd. (16, from 2016 to 2020) and Ncell Axiata Limited (four "Ncell Business" marks in 2026). The Nepal Telecommunications Authority's licensee list records the change of name from Ncell Pvt. Ltd.

Nepal Telecom trades through Nepal Doorsanchar Company Limited, which shows four Class 38 marks under that name, from C-PHONE and SKY PHONE in 2006 to NT WI FI in 2014. Three more NT marks, NT SAT and two NT 4G LTE entries, are printed under the name Nepal Telecommunication (or Telecommunications) Company Limited.

Internet providers file too: Subisu (3), Vianet (3, all in 2026), WorldLink (1, in 2025) and DishHome Digital (2). Media groups file more: Kantipur Publications (12), Gorkha Media Network (11) and Dish Media Network (7).

What words do Class 38 mark names use?

Media words stand out. "TV" appears in 18 mark names, "Radio" in 10 and "News" in 7, and 45 names carry at least one broadcasting or media word.

Logos dominate the class. About 61% of Class 38 entries are a word with a logo, 32% words only and 7% logos only.

Generic technology words are a weak base for a brand. Every 4G mark in Class 38, Ncell's 4G and the NT 4G LTE entries, was printed with a logo. Words like "4G" or "Wi-Fi" describe what everyone offers, so lead with a distinctive name and test it with the conflict checker.

Does a Class 38 trademark replace a telecom licence?

No. Telecom and internet services are licensed by the Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA), whose site lists its licensing procedure and licensees, from network service providers to mobile operators.

A trademark protects the brand, not the right to run a network, and a licence gives no right to a name someone else filed first. Ask a lawyer about licensing, and file the brand early: the first-to-file principle generally applies.

How do you file a Class 38 trademark in Nepal?

Sec. 18A(2) requires a separate application for each class, so map the whole business before you file.

1. Search earlier marks. Check Class 38 and nearby classes on the Nepal trademark database, sound-alikes included.
2. Map your activities. Separate transmission (38) from devices and apps (9), content (41), software (42) and retail (35).
3. Draft the service list. Use WIPO wording that matches what you really do.
4. File at the DoI. Submit the form, specimens and documents for each class; a foreign owner acts through an attorney under Sec. 20.
5. Answer examination. The DoI checks the Sec. 18 refusal grounds and earlier marks, and lets you be heard.
6. Watch the opposition window. After publication in the Industrial Property Bulletin, anyone may oppose within 90 days; rely on the deadline the DoI states.
7. Collect the registration certificate. If no opposition succeeds, you pay the registration fee and the DoI issues the certificate.

Each class carries its own government fees. The fee calculator gives a first estimate, and our trademark registration service handles each step.

What documents does the DoI ask for?

The DoI's checklist for a Nepali applicant lists:

• the completed application form;
• a copy of the industry or business registration or permission, with VAT or PAN proof;
• four specimens of the mark, at most 8 × 8 cm, naming the business, its address and the services;
• the application-fee receipt; and
• a power of attorney if a representative files.

Practitioners often add a board resolution and, from an established company, its latest tax clearance. A newly formed company will not have a tax clearance yet, so confirm the current list on the DoI's Industrial Property Section page.

A foreign owner adds a certified copy of its home registration, a priority letter if it claims Paris Convention priority, and a Nepal address. Nepal is outside the Madrid System, so only a national filing reaches it.

How long does Class 38 registration take?

An unopposed application typically takes about 12–14 months from filing to certificate, and 6–8 months only in the smoothest cases; both are estimates, not promises.

Publication is often quicker. Across all classes in the 12 latest issues by date, the median gap from filing to publication was about 3.5 months, and 64% of marks appeared within six months. The tail is long, though: about one in six took over two years.

How long does a Class 38 registration last?

Sec. 18D sets a term of seven years from the date of registration, not filing. A trademark is renewable any number of times, seven years at a time. Renew within 35 days after the term ends; a six-month late window follows on a fine, after which the registration is cancelled.

Use matters too: under Sec. 18C, a mark unused one year after registration can be cancelled after inquiry. File only for services you plan to launch.

The renewal calculator works out your dates, and our trademark renewal team tracks every class.

Common mistakes: where do telecom brands go wrong?

• Filing only the app. A Class 9 app filing leaves the connectivity service itself unprotected.
• Putting everything in 38. Advertising, banking and social networking belong elsewhere, and a wrong list weakens enforcement.
• Treating content as transmission. A show is not protected because it travels over your network.
• Building on generic words. "Net", "4G" or "Fibre" alone tell customers nothing about who you are.
• Confusing licence and brand. An NTA licence and a DoI trademark protect different things.
• Waiting until launch. An earlier complete application can beat your earlier use.

What does a multi-class telecom filing look like?

Here is an illustration, not a real case. "Himal Connect", a new Nepali ISP, launches fibre internet, a customer app and branded routers. Its internet access belongs in Class 38, the app and routers in Class 9, and any cloud services it sells to businesses in Class 42.

If it sells connection plans in its own shops, Class 35 may matter too: up to four applications for one name. Class 38 alone would leave the router box and the app open to a copycat.

In short: what is Class 38 in Nepal?

It is the NICE class for telecommunications services: access, transmission, broadcasting and messaging. It does not cover the devices, apps, programmes or software around them, so most telecom brands need more than one class.

Search first, describe the real service and file each class separately. Our trademark search team can check conflicts before you file.

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Launching an ISP, OTT or broadcasting brand? Start with our trademark registration service, or talk to IP Sewa about Class 38 and the classes around it.