What is the purpose of a trademark?

A trademark or service mark can be any word, a phrase, symbol, design, or a combination of these that identifies the goods or services belonging to a specific company as well as recognizing the company’s ownership of the brand. It allows customers to recognize the specific company in the marketplace and distinguish them from their competitors. Trademarks are a form of intellectual property which may or may not be registered.

Trademarks can be registered forever as long as proper paperwork and fees are paid, unlike patents, which are granted for a period of 20 years. However, the trademark must remain in use in order to receive the protections associated with them.

Difference between trademark and service mark

Trademark is used to build business’s image and to protect them from unauthorized use by third parties. They help to identify and distinguish a commercial product from other goods or products available in the market. An example of a famous trademark is the Nike Swoosh logo.

Service mark is similar to a trademark, but it is used to identify a service from a provider other than goods or products and is often slogans for a service provided by a company. An example of a service mark is Nike’s slogan, “Just Do It.” The slogan itself is enough to identify the marketing material with Nike, which Nike doesn’t even need to include its famous swoosh logo on the marketing material.

How to identify that a trademark has been claimed?

• Companies use the “™” symbol after unregistered trademarks to claim the marks as their own. This is a symbol often used to advertise or brand products after they have applied for trademark registration.
• Companies can only use the “®” symbol after the trademarks have been officially granted for registration by the Trademark Office.

Benefits of trademark registration

You don’t have to register a trademark to use it, however, it will give other businesses chance to use it, or register the mark to prevent you from using it later. Registering your mark will give you exclusive right to use the claimed trademark. A registered mark can help you to:

• It helps to protect a company’s business identity
• It safeguards a company’s reputation
• It will prevent other businesses to use the same or similar mark

See also:
Global trademark registration procedures and fees