Trademarks are one of the most overlooked assets of any organization. A trademark is the way that customers remember and find your business, yet many owners do not take an easy step available to protect that important resource.
Under US law, a company or individual has the right to a trademark if they are the first one to use it on goods or services. Often, owners are hesitant to seek registration for their trademarks based on uncertainty over their time commitment and costs. We recommend conducting a search for both pre-existing registered trademarks and other unregistered uses such as on websites, or business names. This can be done in circumstances where a business is already using a trademark, or when they intend to begin use in the future.
After that time the USPTO will either file an Office Action citing any problems such as other trademarks over which there may be a likelihood of confusion or approve the mark for publication. Through the Trademark Clearinghouse, the owner of a trademark registration can also opt to receive notice if someone tries to obtain a domain name containing the mark with a new gTLD.
The owner of a registered trademark for physical goods may apply to record its mark with U. Registration is required to participate in this program. For example, a trademark owner may apply to participate in the Amazon Brand Registry, which allows the owner to control the brand and more easily find infringers.
It also provides access to brand analytics on the platform. Such programs generally require the mark be registered to qualify for participation. The United States is a party to the Madrid Protocol, which allows trademark owners in one country to extend their trademark rights to other countries that are parties to the Protocol.
A trademark owner must have applied for registration to make use of the Madrid Protocol. Business owners spend a great deal of time, money, and effort building their company and its reputation in the marketplace.
Protecting that reputation is of paramount importance to survival and future success. In a world where risk is ever-present and inescapable, registering a trademark is a simple process that can significantly reduce risk and drive value.
Registration provides nationwide priority over all others who might seek to adopt the registered mark. Registration significantly reduces the costs of enforcing trademark rights. Registration provides for enhanced protection against counterfeiters, cybersquatters, and importers of infringing product.
And registration provides various other advantages, including qualifying the trademark owner for participation in programs available in online sales programs and as a basis for registration of the trademark in other countries. With so many benefits, trademark registration is undoubtedly one of the most important steps a business should take to protect its brand. See more. This website uses cookies to improve user experience, track anonymous site usage, store authorization tokens and permit sharing on social media networks.
By continuing to browse this website you accept the use of cookies. Click here to read more about how we use cookies. Why Register My Trademark? The Benefits of Trademark Registration. Aaron Haar , Maria Crimi Speth. To embed, copy and paste the code into your website or blog:. Enhanced Damages Against Counterfeiters When a trademark is registered, the trademark owner becomes eligible for enhanced damages against counterfeiters.
Protection Against Importation of Infringing Product The owner of a registered trademark for physical goods may apply to record its mark with U. Basis for Registration of the Trademark in Other Countries The United States is a party to the Madrid Protocol, which allows trademark owners in one country to extend their trademark rights to other countries that are parties to the Protocol.
Conclusion Business owners spend a great deal of time, money, and effort building their company and its reputation in the marketplace. See our web page entitled, Trademark Licensing , to learn more about the benefits of licensing your trademark to third parties and how licensing can affect a trademark registration.
Businesses and individuals are distinct legal entities. A trademark registration can be invalidated if the person or entity claiming ownership is not the one controlling the nature and quality of the goods or services under the mark. Keep in mind that only a legal owner of a trademark has standing to enforce the intellectual property rights of that mark. A common mistake made by business entities is to have an executive of the company file for a trademark in their own personal name.
This can restrain the company from enforcing its trademark rights against competitors and it can risk invalidating the trademark registration. In addition, this hurts the company financially as it deprives the company of one of its most valuable assets. Once a business entity is formed, typically it will be the registered trademark owner. There are several advantages to the company owning the trademark registration: 1 the business entity will be able to license or assign the mark; 2 since trademarks are quantifiable assets, the mark can add great value to the business; 3 trademarks can be used as security interests in financial transactions; 4 successful registered marks can be exploited in business negotiations; and 5 the company will have standing to enforce its trademark rights.
Under U. However, practically speaking it can be challenging to jointly own a mark. Case law is unsettled regarding a number of important issues, such as whether one co-owner would be able to license the mark without the consent of the other co-owner and whether one co-owner could file for trademark infringement without the participation of the other co-owner in the litigation.
For this reason, it is more common for the parties to create a jointly owned single entity to own the trademark. That being said, if you choose to jointly own a trademark you should know that the law permits co-owners to freely enter into contracts to agree upon any type of arrangement for ownership.
Contract law will form the basis for joint trademark ownership rather than trademark law.
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