Back to Client Tools Main Page
The Importance Of Obtaining A Trademark Or Service Mark
What is the difference between a Trademark and a Service Mark?
A trademark is a word, phrase, symbol or design that identifies and distinguishes the source of the goods of one party from those of others. A service mark is the same as a trademark, except that it deals with services rather than products. And note that trademarks and service marks are different than copyrights and patents. A copyright protects an original expression (a photograph, a book). A patent protects an invention.
About Trademarks & Service Marks
A Trademark (or Servicemark) is basically a brand name, or in other words an identifier that distinguishes one product or service from other products or services. The main purpose of a Trademark or Servicemark is to ensure that the consuming public is purchasing goods or obtaining services from the source that they thought they were contracting with.
This being the case, with the abundance of providers of goods and services, it is essential that the consuming public is able to identify and distinguish your goods and services from the goods and services of your competitors.
In addition to identifying the source of goods or services, a registered Trademark or Servicemark also affords the owner of the Trademark or Servicemark a particular set of enforceable rights and protection.
Specifically, the Trademark or Servicemark owner can enforce exclusive use of their Trademark or Servicemark for the particular goods or services that the mark is registered under and the owner can seek damages or stop the unauthorized use of their mark.
A Trademark or Servicemark can be registered at either the state or federal level. While some level of enforceable rights and protection is afforded to those marks registered at the state level; federally registered marks offer much more.
Some of the specific benefits of obtaining a federally registered Trademark include:
- Nationwide constructive notice of the Trademark or Servicemark owner’s claim to the mark.
- Evidence of ownership of the Trademark or Servicemark.
- Jurisdiction of the federal courts may be invoked for a federally registered mark.
- A federally registered mark may be used as the basis for obtaining registration in a foreign country.
Obtaining a Trademark or Servicemark can prevent you from being involved in a costly legal dispute in the future. By virtue of obtaining a federal Trademark you can be assured that you are not infringing on the intellectual property rights of others. It can also create opportunities to generate revenue by licensing the Trademark or Servicemark to authorized users.
Because Federal Trademarks are governed by federal law, the attorney that files the trademark application does not have to be physically located in the state where the trademark applicant resides.
