Today, we will cover the US federal trademark law among intellectual property laws that are useful to know for companies that are running large or small businesses in the US or are considering entering the US market.
Commonly referred to as ‘trademark’, that is, a trademark is a brand name, trade name, logo, etc. protected by law used for products or services. A trademark generally indicates the source of products and refers to words, letters, symbols, and designs that indicate that they belong to a specific company. Examples of trademarks are the apple design logo on Apple’s computers and mobile phones that we often encounter, the impressive grandfather’s face design logo of a KFC chicken fast food chain, and the circular LG logo attached to various home appliances. Because these large companies use different types of different logos on different products, a single company may apply for dozens or hundreds of trademark registrations. Trademarks apply not only to products, but also to services. The unique marks of various banks such as Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Citi Bank, or specific marks such as fast food and restaurants such as KFC mentioned above are good examples of service marks.
There are many people who are curious about the difference between trademark, copyright, and patent among various intellectual property rights and the scope of each protection. A trademark protects a brand name or logo used for each product or service, while a copyright protects artistic and literary creations, and a patent protects the invention of a first developed object or method. For example, if a new type of washing machine is developed, the inventor first applies for a patent to protect the invention, and then registers the trademark for the brand name and logo to be used in the washing machine sales. After that, creative works such as TV advertisements used for sale are protected by copyright.
We will continue to share some considerations to consider when registering this unique brand name or logo with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The most important thing before deciding on a trademark is whether it is a trademark that can be registered. The focus in judging this is the ‘Likelihood of Confusion’ with other brands. Depending on how similar the pattern of the trademark itself is (1) to the existing trademarks and (2) how related the product family or service group in which the trademark is used is with those of the existing trademarks, consumers can choose the ‘origin of the product’. The question is whether the two trademarks can coexist without confusing them. Even if the trademarks are not exactly the same, registration may be rejected due to ‘possibility of confusion’, so it is often the case that existing trademarks are searched for by a specialized agency prior to registration. Of course, this standard of ‘possibility of confusion’ is not a standard that can be judged mechanically, so it is more important to have sufficient discussion with an expert.
Registering a trademark with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office provides an official notice of ownership in the trademark, allows you to use the symbol ® for federal trademark registration, and also allows you to use counterfeit products through the U.S. Border Customs and Border Protection Service. However, it can prevent products that infringe on trademarks from being imported. In the United States, registered product groups/services have a lot of advantages, such as legal assumptions about the right to use exclusive trademarks, and the ability to proceed with cases related to registered trademarks in U.S. federal courts. .
Trademarks currently in use can be registered immediately. In addition, trademarks that are not currently in use but want to start using in the near future can be registered through the Intent-To-Use application.
If you have any additional questions related to the Intellectual Property Law, or if you have any legal questions that readers would like to know, please feel free to contact us at mail@songlawfirm.com. I will reflect that in my next column.