Trademark helps in identifying the goods of one trader and distinguishes that from the other, it signifies that all goods bearing a particular trademark come from a single source. It denotes that all goods bearing a specific trademark are of equal quality, and it serves as a primary means of marketing and selling the goods.
Trademark protects the public from confusion and deception by identifying the source of origin of a particular product as distinguished from other similar product and it protects the trademark owner’s trade and business as well as the goodwill which is attached to his trademark
Trademarks are capable of being represented graphically which makes it possible to determine precisely the mark and its purpose without the use of a supporting sample. It should distinguish the goods or services of one person from that of the other. In addition to the persisting graphical representations new forms such as smell marks, sound marks, test marks, color marks, moving images, holograms, and gestures as well as three-dimensional trademarks are also included.
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Types of Trademarks:
1. Product Mark
Rather than on a service, a product mark is one that is applied to a good or product. This type of trademark serves to distinguish the country of origin of the goods and upholds the goodwill of the business. Given that they represent things, trademark applications filed within trademark class 1-34 may be referred to as product marks.
2. Service Mark
A service mark, like a product mark, is used to distinguish a service from a product. The main purpose of the service mark is to distinguish its owners from those who provide different services. Trademark applications filed under trademark classes 35 to 45 may be referred to as service marks because they denote services.
3. Collective Mark
A collective mark is used to communicate to the general public specific distinctive characteristics of a good or service used to represent a collective. This mark can be used by a group of people to collectively protect a good or service. The mark holder may be a Section 8 Company, a public institution, or an association.
4. Certification Mark
A collective mark is used to communicate to the general public specific distinctive characteristics of a good or service used to represent a collective. This mark can be used by a group of people to collectively protect a good or service. The mark holder may be a Section 8 Company, a public institution, or an association.
5. Shape Mark
Shape Marking is only used to safeguard a product’s shape so that consumers can relate to it and choose to purchase it from a particular producer. Once a product is acknowledged to have a distinctive shape, its shape can be registered. Examples of shapes are Coca-Cola and Fanta bottles, each of which has a certain form that is linked to the brand.
6. Sound Mark
A sound mark is a noise that can be used to identify a product or service coming from a certain provider. In order for a sound to be recognized as a sound mark, people must be able to immediately and easily recognize the service, item, or performance that the sound stands for.
Branding
Branding in a business is needed to grab the customer’s attention. It makes the brand stand out, making an impact thus accelerating the business. It is the set of ideas the potential customers have about the company. Trademark rules guide branding as they protect the graphical representations that provide branding to the business.
In the business market it becomes important to stand out and establish the uniqueness of a product and show the customer why one company is better than the other. This provides recognition to the brand including logo, websites and other brand assets. It allows the owners to control how the customers perceive the brand and helps in maintaining a great experience for them, thus increasing the market value of the company.
Importance of Trademark in Branding
As branding forms such an important part in the recognition of goods and setting up of goodwill of the company in the market, it is very important to protect them. A registered trademark helps in stabilizing and ownership on the brand, protecting the use of the brand from any unauthorized third party. The registered trademark is proof that the product completely belongs to the owner and the owner has exclusive rights to use, sell and modify the brand’s name in whichever manner he wishes to.
In addition, it provides uniqueness to the brand as the brand makes the goods and services stand out differentiating it from other brands, a Trademark provides a unique identity to the brand. Trademarks grant these brands especially for start-ups security against any trademark infringement as these brands make the company distinct from their competitors therefore these brands should be prevented from being copied or stolen by their rivals.
The branding of any company increases its value as the business starts to grow and expand over time making it important to protect the brand under the trademark law. Rival companies tend to sell their own products under the garb of well-known brands which has to be taken care of. Trademarks in these brands provide a strong ground for the brand owners to take action against any such infringement.
Good branding provides a ground for attracting more potential employees along with more inflow of investment all of this is very necessary for the business to grow and the recognition of trademarks becomes very important in this situation. Not registering the brand under the trademark leaves open the lawsuit for companies who did register one under the same name, sign, slogan or design. Under such situation, the business might have to face repercussions, especially the brand name, the websites and other extended material related to the brand identity.
The original function is what forms a distinguishing factor between goods and services belonging to different sources. Trademark also includes other functions such as quality function which pertains to specific positive attributes and certain values of the product. Trademark also has a communication function that provides the knowledge of the trademark and carries its image through advertisement between the customers.
These functions were largely accepted in the L’Oreal/Bellure case where the court stated that the function of the trademark does not only pertains to providing a guarantee to the customers with respect to the origin of the goods or service but these trademarks also have other functions as well such as providing guarantee for the quality of the goods or service and those of advertisement. These are similar to brand functions but provide identity, character, and essence in addition.
There is a considerable amount of investment required in the creation of intellectual property and so does it‘s protection there should be an economic justification by providing clear value to it. The concept of brand equity represents the monetary value of a well-established and protected brand. It is because the recognized brands are seen to have a greater market influence than the less recognized brands, this recognition makes it simpler on the decision-making process of the potential customers.
A well-established brand not only helps increase marketing effectiveness but also allows the company to protect its margin and potentially move towards new services or product lines. This brand equity forms a part of the company’s intangible assets but this can be changed into tangible assets by monetarily raising the company’s value which increased due to it. The relation between brand and trademark are representative elements of the corporate image.
The companies should protect their capital investment through brands and utilize trademark protection. Trademarks need not necessarily be registered but there are certain extra rights granted to the owner of a registered trademark as against that of an unregistered trademark creating difficulty to prove the existence of the right.
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