Friday, September 14, 2012

US Trademark Registration Offers Inexpensive Protection

By Jeremy Winters


The Library of Congress takes care of copyright and US trademark registration. The Patent Office handles patent registration. When somebody submits an application for a trademark within the United States, he is required to submit one dollar and the proper form to be able to get a registered trademark.

The business has to renew a registered trademark each year. When a person gets one, he gains proper protection for the specific icon and logo of his company. He must ensure that his trademark does not resemble the logo of another organization in the exact same industry. An intellectual property attorney can help a small business owner understand this area of law.

People typically do not know that they really don't have to register a trademark to be able to get one. The originator of the logo carries a trademark as soon as he makes it. Nevertheless, he can't use the trademark symbol except when he does apply for US trademark registration properly. The office that deals with the process ensures that the new logo will not infringe on another company's intellectual property. Applicants who make it through this process gain added legal protection.

Courts evaluate the date of registration in legal challenges. When a judge makes a decision in a trademark infringement situation, he will attempt to discover which party registered it first. The date of registration is much easier to show than the date of creation. Someone who registers his trademark might succeed in these cases even though he created the logo later than the other party in the dispute did.

The majority of people can afford to acquire a registered trademark. A US trademark registration may only cost a single dollar per year, but it could save its owner thousands of dollars in legal fees. Even somebody who does not expect to file a lawsuit really should safeguard his brand. Government agencies could change the fee someday, nevertheless it remains a lot less than a cup of Starbuck's coffee. Readers understand that Starbucks almost certainly will increase their prices during the next couple of years.

A trademark helps individuals know the owner's business and the brand. Whenever a particular person purchases Coca Cola or Pepsi he understands what to expect. The artwork on the package tells him. The unique artwork lets the purchaser know well before he even examines the label. The consumer expects the red can to be well carbonated, and he expects the soda in the blue can to generally be sweeter when compared to the soda inside the red can. The identical logic is applicable to a lot of other products. Owners of Craftsmen tools know that they purchased a top quality product every time they see the logo.




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