Once you have your logo designed by logo designers of your company, you would like to have a sense of security that it will not be used by any other firm. For that, you need to acquire trademark rights of that logo. What exactly is a trademark? A trademark is a unique name, word, phrase, design, symbol or any sort of technology used by a person or a company. Those who wish to differentiate their services and products from other companies, can get them protected by associating some relevant trademark rights.
Logo designers are aware of the copyrights of logo information, but very few have an idea about getting trademark rights of a logo. These rights give you privilege to completely acquire what is yours and prevent others from incorporating a similar design for their logo. A logo is a symbol used by a person or company to be placed on their printed materials and products. A logo design is considered a trademark of a company, and it may be in any shape and size as decided by the company. It can be a word, collection of words, design, or symbol in different color and feel.
Trademarking a logo requires few steps to be followed, and if you're based in the United States you can take reference from the following steps.
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Step One.
Generally, you would wish to see your logo to be accessible for your use and adoption. Besides that, you would also not like anyone else using the same kind of logo as yours, or you are using a logo that someone is already using. To identify that, a trademark search is performed as required by the company. The trademark search allows you to identify whether someone else is using a similar or highly identical logo or not. If you continue to use your logo knowing someone else has already adopted it, there are chances of you getting sued due to trademark infringement. For companies, it is advisable to hire a trademark attorney who can facilitate you better with the legal expertise he might have.
Step Two.
Once you know that your logo is not in use of any other person or firm, the next step is getting it secured through trademark rights. Essentially, there are three ways to get it done. First, just by simply using your logo you acquire trademark rights, however the rights you get through this are geographically based. It means it can be used beyond your geographical areas which also is a big threat. Second is acquiring trademark rights within the state in which you're operating. All you have to do is simply file an application to get your trademark registered with the Secretary of State's office. The third type of trademark is relevant if you're planning to operate in more than one state. For that you will need to file a trademark application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Step Three.
After getting your logo trademark rights, you might want to secure it from any sort of illegal adoption. This step refers to implementing your trademark rights. Having "Trademark watch" in place is the best way to do this. This will notify you when any third parties begin to use a logo almost similar to yours.
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