Trademarks  & Service Marks

Seal of the United States Patent and Trademark...Image via Wikipedia

Trademarks TM & Service Marks SM

Trademarks are for goods. Service marks are for services.

  • One can trademark slogans (i.e. Where do you want to go today?), letters (i.e. HP), symbols (i.e. logos), sounds (Apple and Macintosh start up sound.

  • One can register trademark by state or with federal government. To obtain protection throughout U.S. one should register with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

  • USPTO bases decision to grant trademark based on distinctiveness, industry

  • One can use PTO site, do a NAMEPROTECT, or Thompson and Thomson to do a search to see if a trademark or similar mark is currently being used

  • In U.S., first use in commerce matters in U.S. First to register in Europe.

  • One cannot file trademarks that are deceptive, symbols of the United States, misappropriates names or likeness of a well-known person.

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