The signs of a trademark

The signs of a trademark

A unique symbol or word(s) that represents an organization, business, brand, or products is known as a trademark. If someone has registered a trademark, anyone else cannot use it without the permission of the trademark owner or by the time proper paperwork is in place. Please note that trademarks should not be confused with patents as the later is meant for 20 years, while trademarks are forever. Trademarks often become synonymous with the company. In some cases, even the whole range of products are recognized simply by a logo.

The signs of a trademark

Three main signs indicate a particular logo, word or phrase is a trademark:

• ™ – If someone uses it with a name, logo, or slogan, it means they have claimed it, but the formal application is still pending.
• ® – Officially registered trademarks are allowed to add this symbol with the logo, phrase, or work.
• ℠ – It is used by companies that deal with services and not products. However, to keep things more uncomplicated, it is not widely used by the service providers.

Why should you do a trademark search?

It is an essential step before you adopt a trademark. It provides your company, business, brand, or products the identity it will take with it for years. When a Trademark search is conducted, there are chances of a similar trademark in use. If a Trademark search is done before launching the brand or products in the market, it becomes easier to modify them if a similar trademark already exists. The companies that fail to perform such search often regret later as using a registered trademark that belongs to someone else can put you in an expensive legal dispute.

In today’s time, the brands prefer to own the exclusive rights to the brand name. A new and unique brand name makes it easier for the customers to remember it and associate it with the services and products that you provide.

What is a trademark public search?

Trademark public search is the search for registered trademarks in the Indian Trademark Registry database. It provides the information on the keyword(s) searched to see if it is available for use for goods or services. While performing Free Trademark Search In India, similar word marks, including phonetically identical names, can be included in the comprehensive search. There are no charges for searching doing an online trademark search in the Indian Trademark Registry.

There are three categories of Trademark Search in India:

• Wordmark – This type of search looks for similar representation of wordmark.
• Vienna Code – This type of search looks for similar artistic representation of a logo or symbol.
• Phonetic – This type of search looks for phonetically similar words or phrases.

Trademark Search Parameters

There are three search parameters based on the categories. When you are performing the search, you have to select either one of them to run a Trademark search process.

Wordmark Search

There are 45 classes, among which one to 34 deals with goods and types 35 to 45 deal with services. The class(es) you choose should be associated with the services or products that you provide. While searching in the India trademark database, you can search with only one class at a time. In Wordmark search, there is an option to choose prefixes such as method “Starts With,” “Contains,” or “Match With.”

Phonetic Search

It is more or less similar to the Wordmark search method, but there is no prefix method in it. The steps for the search for using this parameter are identical as well.

Vienna code Search

This type of search is to search for similar device marks. The six-digit Vienna code is used along with the relevant class to complete the quest. The results will show all the marks containing the device.

How to perform a Comprehensive Trademark Search?

The Trademark Search Process is straightforward:

• First of all visit the trademark search page: https://ipindiaonline.gov.in/tmrpublicsearch/frmmain.aspx
• Now select the Search Type located on the top of the page.
• Now add the word or phrase you want to search using the prefixes (if any)
• Go through the classes and check which will be applicable to your search. Please note that if your products or services fall into more than one category, you have to perform multiple searches.
• Click on the search button.

Understanding the result

The result page will show the list of all trademarks that start with the word or phrase you have entered in the specific class. To know more about the brand like

• trademark application number
• application date
• owner information
• trademark validity date
• a trademark used since the date
• the description

you can click on the “show more” option in front of the result.

There can be several matches as it interprets the implications of a farfetched match with an existing trademark. If there are no previous owners of the mark you want to choose for your business, it will show “no matches found.”

Please note that you should search for the trademark in all applicable classes to make sure no one owns the chosen trademark or a trademark similar to it.

Final words

For any business, its name and logo are the essential part of the identity. It is necessary to make sure that no one else is using that name or similar trademark for their business. Thus before you launch a service or product in the market, you should perform a free trademark search, and if it is available, register it to claim the ownership.