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What is a trade
mark ?
A Trade Mark is a
visual symbol in the form of a word , a device ,or a label applied to articles
of commerce with a view to indicate to the purchasing public that is a
good manufactured or other wise dealt in by a particular person as distinguished
from similar goods dealt or manufacture by other persons.
Object of Trade Mark
IS to deal with
the precise nature of the rights which a person can a cquire in respect of a
TM-The mode of acquisition of such rights -the method of transfer of those
rights to others-the precise nature of infringement of such rights-and the
remedies available in respect thereof.
Functions
of a Trade Mark
1. It
identifies the product of its origin 2. It guaranties its unchanged quality
3.
It advertises the products & 4.
It creates an image for products.
What is a
good Trade Mark
1. It
should be easy to pronounce and remember if it is word mark 2. In
case of a device mark -should be capable of being described by a single
word. 3. It was be easy to spell correctly and write legibly 4.
It should not be descriptive 5. It should be short 6. It should
appeal to the eye as well as the ear.7.It should not belong to the class
of marks prohibited for registration 8. It should satisfy the
requirements of registration.
Tips
On Trademarks Management
A trademark is much like that of a human being
because the life of a trademark may be correlated to the life of a human being.
Every human being is to be named immediately after birth in this earth and on
the same line every product is to be identified with a trademark. Hence there is
need to nurture trademarks like human beings.
Trademark is a major asset of any
company. Hence ' trademarks management ' in an enterprise comprises two aspects:
-
Trademark Policy
-
Trademark Protection
Trademark
policy is a marketing function.
Normally the marketing personnel of an organization will take care of this
trademark policy letter known as ' Brand Management '.
Trademark
protection is
a legal function .In small enterprises one of the tasks of the legal department
is to assure the protection of company's trademarks. In large enterprises there
is need to create a specific department known as ' Trademarks department' which
will look after the ' Trademarks Management '.
Since trademark protection is a legal
function, the trade marks department best assure its role when it is integrated
in the legal function of an organization.
The principal duty of the Trademarks
Department is to protect and administer the trademark of the company i.e. by
getting registration under the relevant laws of a particular country, the
country of registration, the list and classes of goods and the services covered
, renewals, action against the infringes and dishonest users and so on.
The trademarks department has an
additional task in advising the marketing personnel in the choice of new
trademarks, their protect ability and their availability, and also in the legal
aspects of trademark policy.
The Trademarks Department may also be
entrusted with the task to managing the licensing of trademarks, drafting
license agreements and permitted user agreement for use of trademarks and also
to look after other areas of Intellectual Property such as Patents, Designs,
Copyrights and technical know how.
Functions of the trade marks department
for proper trademarks department for proper trademark management.
1) Advise the marketing department
with regard to the choice of a new trademark.
2) Legal clearance of a new trade
mark by conducting searches in the Trademarks Registry and also in the market
places with regard to the availability of identical or similar marks in respect
of similar goods and services.
3) Submit trademark applications and
advise the company to go for registration in a country where the goods are to be
exported or sold.
4) Since there is globalization of
industry and trade, it is better to seek International protection of the
trademarks and other Intellectual Property.
5) Advise the company for proper use
of trademarks after obtaining registration in order to avoid the attack on the
registered trademarks on the ground of non-use by business competitors.
6) Initiate legal action against the
infringes by filing civil suits or criminal complaint against the infringes and
dishonest traders.
7) To conduct search and raid the
premises when the infringed or spurious goods are being manufactured or marketed
with the help of local police personnel after lodging criminal complaint.
8) To maintain individual files for each
and every trademark of the company for easy reference.
9) It is better to computerize the
Trademarks Department by creating a software for this kind of ' Trademarks
Management '.
If
the creation of trademark department is not economical one of trademark
department is not economical one for any type of organization, then it is better
to entrust this task to a Trademark Attorney who should be properly instructed
to maintain all particulars and papers with regard to trademarks either on
retainer or work-to-work basis.
 Trademark
Registration Forms:
Click here
/
Sample Registration Form:
available
here
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