Tag: Trademark

What is Meant by Registered Trademark and How to Get One?
In today’s world, there are so many products and services in the market.

Don’t you think we need a way to differentiate all these products otherwise, there will be a lot of confusion among the general public.

The solution to this problem is trademark.

There are two types of trademarks: Registered trademark and Unregistered trademark.

We will discuss both of these in great detail and also tell you the procedure for registering a trademark.

What is a Registered Trademark?
Advantages of a Registered Trademark:
What is an Unregistered Trademark?
Disadvantages of Unregistered Trademark:
Trademark Registration Process Steps:

Trademark Registration Cost in India

What is a Registered Trademark?

Registered Trademark Symbol

Registered Trademarks are those that have been registered with the Trademark Registry after completing the entire Trademark Registration Procedure.

In India registration is not mandatory. But, you should always register because it comes with many benefits.

Trademarks in India are registered under the ‘Indian Trademark Act, 1999’.

A registered trademark is an asset for your organization.

Advantages of a Registered Trademark:
- No person can use the wordmark or logo which is registered by you in the trademark. However, if someone uses it without your permission, you are given legal protection and you can also sue that person.
- On your logo, you can use the ® symbol which indicates that your trademark is registered and no one else can use it.
- Customers are able to distinguish your product from others in the same category.
- Your company gains more trust and your trademark makes your organization prestigious.
- You can also sell or transfer the rights to use the trademark.
- The cost of registration is low.
- Once you have registered your trademark you just need to pay the maintenance cost and renewal cost that is done after 10 years of registration.
Number of Applications Forms Filed for Trademark Registration (2018-2020)

What is an Unregistered Trademark?

The Symbol of Unregistered Trademark

An Unregistered Trademark is not registered with the Trademark Registry under the ‘Indian Trademark Act, 1999’.

An Unregistered Trademark acts as a barrier for your organization in achieving goals.

Disadvantages of Unregistered Trademark:
- Trademarks that are not registered don’t get any protection by any statutory law. But, they are protected by common law in India.
- You don’t get any protection against infringement in the common law. Although, you do get the right to sue for passing off.
- What is the meaning of passing off? In simple terms passing off is the act of conducting unfair practices to gain benefits from the goodwill of other businesses.
- You cannot use the ® symbol.
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Trademark Registration Process Steps:

Official website of Intellectual Property India

Indian Government has a official website through which you can register your trademark.

The steps for trademark registration are explained below:

Trademark Search

Website for Trademark Search

Registering a trademark that has been taken by someone else is of no use.

Hence, you should first check if the name which you have decided is taken by someone else or not.

Official Website for Class Search

You should first know under which class your business falls. To find your class use the official ‘Indian Trademark Registration Website’.

After learning about the class, search for trademark availability.

Filling the Trademark Application Online

Website for Filling Trademark Registration Form

Form TM-A, the registration application form, can be submitted in person at the Trademark Office or online through the official IP India website.

If you wish to submit the documents in person then you have to wait for at least 15 -20 days to receive the receipt of the acknowledgement.

Although if you fill the form online you would immediately get the receipt on the website.

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Examination of the Trademark Application

Website to Check Trademark Status

Your trademark application is then examined by the government authorities.

The authorities will examine your brand name to ensure that it complies with the law and that you have adhered to certain terms.

It takes 30 days for the examination report to be issued by the trademark authority.

If your application gets rejected the objections will be mentioned in the examination report.

You will have 30 days to fulfil those conditions or give evidence for those objections.

Reply to the Examination Report

Once you have replied to all the objections mentioned in the examination report, the trademark authority may appoint a hearing if they are not satisfied by your reply.

After the hearing, the trademark authority may accept your response and proceed with your registration or completely reject your application.

On the other hand, if they are satisfied with your evidence or application they will proceed with your trademark registration process.

Publication and Advertisement of the Trademark

Once the registration application has been approved, the trademark is advertised and published in the Trademark Journal for 4 months.

This is done to invite the general public to file an opposition against your trademark.

If you receive any objection or notice then you need to file the counter-statement application.

In this application, you need to provide all the evidence to get your trademark registered.

Registration Certificate and Renewal

Website for Certificate Checking

Once your trademark gets published in the Trademark Journal you will be eligible to accept the registration certificate from the authorities.

This certificate needs to be renewed within the time span of 10 years.

Conclusion

As you can see the process for trademark registration in India is simple and straightforward.

Trademarks can positively impact your business. But, still many people don’t consider this as important.

It increases your organization’s goodwill in no time. You will also get essential rights and trademark protection.

Use this opportunity and take your business to the next level.

FAQs

Is trademark registration mandatory in India?

No, trademark registration is not mandatory in India. Although you should always register as it has a lot of benefits.

After how many years you can renew a trademark?

Trademark can be renewed in the time span of 10 years.

How much time will it take to register a trademark?

After the application and advertisement processes are complete, it takes roughly 6 to 8 months for a trademark to be registered without any objections.

Trademarks in India are registered under which act?

Trademarks in India are registered under the ‘Indian Trademark Act, 1999’.

Why trademark registration is important in India?

Trademark registration provides differentiation between different products of similar categories and also assists the brand with its unique identity.

What is a registered trademark symbol in India?

The trademark registration symbol is “®”.
October 21, 2022
An Ultimate Legal Guide to Follow While Establishing a Startup

Purchasing and starting your own business is a big undertaking. With creative ideas and a pumping workforce, it is necessary to have the legal formalities taken care of to give your business a smooth start! Let us have a detailed look at the legal formalities required in order to start a business.

Starting a business comes with great responsibilities to work on. The first step in starting a business is to get its paperwork done. It is not a myth that establishing a startup requires a number of legal procedures to be done in order to have a legal business. Most entrepreneurs might feel stressed at this stage. Hence, we have simplified the legal procedures one needs to follow while starting a business.

Every business has its own set of rules and requirements. Depending on your domain, it is the duty of the owner to research all the legal requirements and take care of them beforehand. You can take the help of legal attorneys, but it is necessary to figure these things out from the day of formation.

Form a Limited Liability Company (LLC) Or a Corporation
Agreement for the Shareholders
Bylaws
Assignment of Intellectual Property Agreements
Trademark
Non-disclosure Agreement
Articles of Incorporation/Association
Get the Required Permits and Licenses
Insurance Can Help You Protect Your Company
Agreement of the Founders

Form a Limited Liability Company (LLC) Or a Corporation

The first step in getting started with the real procedures for the startup is to make a decision for choosing a suitable business structure. Basically, there are two options to consider from. Limited Liability Company and corporation are the two choices made available at the start with both the options carrying their own pros and cons.

The best option in selecting LLC is that it will save you from your personal liability attack. For a simple consideration, when a startup fails and a company goes bankrupt, the personal assets of the person like a car and home will not be affected by it in LLC. One can also file their business revenue as a part of income tax. But they will also be required to pay self-employment tax on the contrary.

The corporation is also termed a C corporation. It is an expensive method to go for and is also quite hectic to create it. Basically, a corporation is a legal entity apart from its owner or owners. And if to be considered, they offer the best personal liability protection.

Agreement for the Shareholders

A Shareholder’s Agreement must be in place whenever your firm is ready to move forward with private financing from angel investors or from venture capital firms, as the case may be.

It is one of the most important startup documents since it determines the shareholders’ rights and obligations, as well as their ability to execute such rights. These contracts are extremely important since they outline the connection between a firm’s shareholders and are crucial if a co-founder decides to leave the company.

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Bylaws

A set of rules is always the right place to start if you are starting out a company of your own. Bylaws are these sets of regulations that ensure the smooth functioning of a business both internally and externally. These laws are not only imposed on employees but they also provide a voice for their thoughts and opinions.

These rules are made very meticulously, keeping in mind the requirements of employees at all levels of the corporation. They also specify the election rights to decide the leadership of a company, along with other aspects that can severely impact the internal workings of an organization.

Assignment of Intellectual Property Agreements

Intellectual Property (IP) is one of the most important aspects of any company, big or small. Companies can go to great lengths in order to protect their intellectual property. Failing to do so can lead to losing the value of a startup by the infringement.

There are two different forms of Intellectual Property agreements to consider. A shareholder and a startup enter into a technological assignment agreement. The shareholder assigns his or her intellectual property to the corporation in this case. These are the intellectual properties of individuals prior to the company’s creation.

When a company’s employees create an innovative product or service, invention assignment agreements are important. Invention Assignment Agreements ensure that, in this scenario, the corporation owns all rights to the IP portfolio.

An Intellectual Property Assignment Agreement could be one of the most important legal contracts for your startup, determining whether or not you can get the funding you need to expand. This is especially true for technology companies, as investors and venture capital organizations frequently assess the worth of your IP portfolio.

Trademark

Trademark

Trademarks can be a word, phrases,s or symbols. The prime purpose of a trademark is to differentiate between similar products of different companies. Trademarks are associated with the protection of the company’s intellectual property.

Trademarks are the best method to differentiate and identify your company from others. Registering for a Trademark is equally important as gaining a business license. One can get their trademark registration done by visiting the trademark registration portal or physically visiting the trademark registry offices.

Trademark strengthens and protects the business from any illegal competition or imitation. The disadvantage of the trademark registration process is that when you register a trademark with the trademark office, everyone with a similar-sounding name is notified and given the opportunity to object, so you may find that people who would not have been interested in what you’re doing before suddenly become interested in a specific trademark.

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Non-disclosure Agreement

A Non Disclosure Agreement is a necessity for every business deal. It is the first thing you should take care of before finalizing any deals. This NDA not only safeguards your interests but also makes sure that the other party’s privacy is also under safety. These documents are necessary to make sure that no kind of breach can occur midway and that the interests of either party remain unharmed.

Before you go ahead and start discussing the terms and conditions of a deal with any third party, it is always advised to go for an NDA first. All terms of the deal should be stated clearly in this document. In case of any breach or dispute, there should be clear terms for termination present, that would benefit both parties to close the deal without any hassle.

Articles of Incorporation/Association

Before establishing a business it is necessary to have a clear business plan. Most amateur entrepreneurs make similar mistakes that cost them heavily later on. Going for sole ownership of a company is not as easy as it sounds. There are huge tax bills that ultimately fall upon the shoulders of the sole proprietor.

Most businesses that run successfully over long periods tend to have multiple shareholders. Not filing tax returns on time, with the Revenue Service can also result in the owner losing his personal property. It is smart to try to avoid heavy taxes and bills during the starting period of any business.

This can severely hinder growth. However, having a number of shareholders, all responsible for the big decisions can help a company run smoothly without financial troubles.

Get the Required Permits and Licenses

Small Business Administration Website

Another mandatory step in legal formality is to get a business license and permits from the federal and state government in order to start a startup. One can prefer to look for a different license with respect to their field of work and the area of development.

A common list of federal business licenses is given by the Small business administration. One needs to apply for an applicable business license and permit for their desired area. Registering the company with a business license is legal evidence of being approved by the local government. One needs to pay a certain amount of fees in order to avail of their business license.

This amount can vary for different businesses and can also be affected by the place of the startup. All these factors are majorly decided at the state government level.

The above graph shows major challenges faced by entrepreneurs while establishing a startup

Insurance Can Help You Protect Your Company

When the personal liability protections provided by your specific business structure are insufficient, business insurance can help. Not only can business insurance cover your personal assets, but it can also safeguard your company’s assets.

The prime two types of insurance mandated by law are unemployment and disability insurance. It’s also a smart idea to get business insurance to safeguard your company from other threats. The following are some examples of common company insurance policies:

a) General liability insurance: It safeguards your company from a variety of financial losses, such as property damage, injury, medical concerns, and litigation settlements or judgments.

b) Insurance for product liability: If your company sells products, this insurance covers you in the event that one of them is defective and causes a consumer injury.

c) Commercial property insurance: It protects your firm from property loss or damage caused by natural disasters, accidents, or vandalism.

Agreement of the Founders

In the case of startups with numerous founders or founding parties, signing an agreement that describes the working coordination of all parties and forms outlines to establish limits becomes important. It’s to keep any future confrontations at bay. To avoid any disagreements among the startup’s founding members, all co-founders should sign a complete operating agreement.

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Conclusion

These startup legal formalities are not a guarantee of success in your business. Nonetheless, proof of your commitment to bringing your startup to new heights with good planning.

For a brighter future as a corporation, it is critical to put some effort into getting the legal formalities out of the way. The above article provides deep insight into the procedures one needs to perform legally in order to get their startup ready for a long race.

FAQs

Does a startup need to be registered?

Yes, registering a startup is one of the most essential steps to be followed while starting s startup. A startup needs to be registered with the respective government body and should also have a legally recognizable status.

What are the legal documents needed before starting a startup in India?

There is a number of legal documents that are needed before starting a startup in India. Some of them are Trademark registration, a nondisclosure agreement, shareholders agreement, founders agreement, and some other documents as per need.

What is the founder’s agreement?

A founders agreement is an agreement done between all the founders of the startup. It is done in order to have clarity of ownership, tasks, disputes, terms to apply in certain situations, etc.

August 26, 2022
Biggest Trademark Wars in History – When the Biggest Brands Fought Over Their Names

A Trademark is an intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from others.

The owner of a trademark can be an individual, business organisation or any legal entity.

How Can a Trademark Be Used?
How and Where Is a Trademark Registered?
What Is a Trademark Infringement?
Biggest Trademark Wars

How Can a Trademark Be Used?

A trademark acts as an identification for a particular brand of product or service. One company’s trademark can also be utilised by others under licensing agreements. A case in point was the license that was purchased by the Lego Group from Lucasfilms which allowed them to launch Lego Star Wars.

Brand piracy is the unauthorised use of trademarks by producing and trading counterfeit consumer goods. In such a case the owner of the trademark might pursue legal action if the trademark is originally registered and can be proved.

How and Where Is a Trademark Registered?

Usually, the owner of the trademark applies to the Patent and Trademark Office to register the trademark. Depending on which country or jurisdiction is the owner applying to, the official body conducts its due diligence within a stipulated time period before issuing or declining the request to register the trademark.

Once the trademark rights are established within a particular jurisdiction, they are generally enforceable only in that jurisdiction. There is a range of international trademark laws and systems which facilitate the protection of trademarks in more than one jurisdiction.

What Is a Trademark Infringement?

This is a violation of the exclusive rights that are attached to the trademark without licenses or the authorisation of the trademark. When someone uses an identical or confusingly similar trademark that is owned by another party, in relation to identical products or services as listed in the original trademark, this is known as an infringement.

This activity is deemed criminal and is punishable by law. History has recorded many such trademark wars and some have received much public coverage.

Biggest Trademark Wars

War I – Skippy Vs. Skippy – The Great Peanut Butter Trademark War

Skippy Comic vs. Skippy Peanut Butter

In 1923, Percy Crosby created a comic strip called Skippy. It featured a feisty youngster who liked to paint fences. Two years of success saw Crosby, doing business as Skippy Inc., register Skippy as a trademark in 1925.

He, then, licensed the trademark for branded toys, games, trading cards, candy bars, school supplies, clothing and Skippy brand bread. He did not however lend it for Peanut Butter. So, what happened?

Californian businessman Joseph L. Rosefield began mass commercial distribution of peanut butter in 1922, in California under the brand name “Luncheon Brand” He changed the brand name to Skippy in 1932 following Skippy comic strip’s Hollywood success.

Rosefield’s packaging bore an eerie similarity to Crosby’s Skippy with the paint-brush lettering with a slatted fence and a paint bucket

In 1933, Rosefield tried to register the Skippy mark for his peanut butter but was successfully thwarted by Crosby. Nevertheless, Rosefield kept using the brand name

By 1945 Crosby’s newspaper contract and the federal trademark expired. Rosefield moved in and registered Skippy peanut butter in 1947 without opposition. Joan Crosby Tibbets, Crosby’s daughter inherited control of Skippy Inc., and control of Skippy Peanut Butter was passed to CPC International, Inc.

In 1977, Tibbets and CPC negotiated a co-existence contract and CPC was released from liability for trademark Infringement. In 1978, Tibbets re-registered the Skippy mark for cartoons without opposition from CPC

In 1980, Tibbets sued CPC for trademark infringement in the eastern district of Virginia looking for a seven-figure licencing fee. After a firm refusal from CPC, in 1985 Tibbets licensed the Skippy mark to sell Skippy brand caramel popcorn and peanut snack.

CPC approached the Virginia court in 1986 and successfully stopped Tibbets stating confusion with the Skippy peanut butter brand. After a decade of silence, the internet era saw Tibbets register Skippy.com in 1997 beating CPC in the race. The website went live in 1998 and launched an all-out attack on CPC

Following this, CPC went back to court, which passed an order to remove all CPC-related references from the site. In 2000, however, the Fourth Circuit reversed and held that the entire website was protected by the First Amendment, which helped to restore all content.

In 2002, Tibbets played her final card and petitioned for the cancellation of the Skippy Peanut Butter mark due to the emergence of new evidence. However, the claim was barred by the court in 2004

Tibbets remains unbowed till today crusading against the Skippy Peanut Butter mark. It is one of the longest trademark wars in history that still carries on.

War II – Apple Corps vs. Apple Computer (now Apple Inc.)

Apple Corps vs. Apple Computer

Apple Corps, a holding company founded by the Beatles and owner of their record label, Apple Records, had filed a lawsuit against, then, Apple Computer for trademark infringement.

In 1978, Apple Corps filed a lawsuit against Apple Computer for trademark infringement. In 1981 both parties settled the case with a settlement amount of USD 80,000 and the condition that Apple Computer does not enter the music business and Apple Corps not enter the computer business.

In 1986 Apple Computer added an audio-recording capability to their computers called MIDI leading Apple Corps to sue them again in 1989 citing violation of the 1981 agreement. Apple Corps won the lawsuit ending Apple Computer’s foray into multimedia

In 1991, Apple Computer again paid a settlement amount of USD 26.5 million to Apple Corps. This time it was due to the system sound called Chimes that was included in the Macintosh’s operating system. The settlement outlined each company’s trademark right to use the term ‘Apple’. Apple Corps held the right to any creative works whose principal content is music, whereas Apple Company agreed not to package, sell or distribute physical music material

2003 saw Apple Corps suing Apple Company again for breach of contract in using the Apple logo in the creation and operation of iTunes.

Apple Corps lost the lawsuit with the judge stating there was no demonstration of any breach of the trademark agreement.

In January 2007, at the Macworld Conference, Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs heavily featured the Beatles in his keynote presentation. The relations between the two companies seemed to be improving

In February 2007, the two companies reached a settlement for their trademark dispute which ended their ongoing war

Conclusion

Trademark Infringement Wars are a reality in the business world. In an era of globalization, some of these wars are played out on the world platform. History has seen its fair share of such Trademark Infringement wars and some have lasted longer than others. The list is long and growing everyday with new wars being waged.

What becomes clear is that no company will back down from defending and protecting its trademark rights.

FAQs

What is the largest trademark in the world?

Some of the most valuable trademarks in the world are Amazon – 416 billion dollars, Apple – 352 billion dollars, Microsoft – 327 billion dollars, Google – 324 billion dollars, and Visa – 187 billion dollars.

What is the world’s oldest trademark?

Bass Ale triangle is one of the oldest trademarks in the world depicted on beer bottles in 1882.

What are some of the biggest trademark wars?

Apple the record label company vs Apple, Skippy comic vs Skippy peanut butter, Instagram vs LitterGram, and Starbucks v Sambucks

August 2, 2022