Filing a Trademark Case When a trademark owner believes their mark is being used by someone else to cause confusion, they may file a trademark case. Infringement is the legal term used to describe the fact that a trademark has been used without permission of the trademark owner in a way to confuse customers. A Read more about Filing a Trademark Case to Prevent Confusion[…]
Strong Marks To be registerable, a trademark must be capable of acting as a source identifier. Strong marks are distinctive, that is they are capable of readily identifying the source of a good or a service. Weak marks are not capable or do not easily identify a source of a good or service. Common terms Read more about How to Create Strong Marks[…]
What is the Benefit of Registering a Trademark? Why register a trademark? By simply using a mark in commerce you get what are called common law rights. That means that you don’t have to register a trademark to obtain some legal rights. However, these rights are limited and if you plan on using the brand Read more about 101 Series – Registering a Trademark[…]
What is a Service Mark? A service mark (or servicemark) is just like a trademark but it is used in connection with services. A trademark is typically used in connection with goods. A mark is the general term for both a service and a trademark. Generally, service marks relates to companies who provide services instead of Read more about 101 Series – Service Mark[…]
How Trademarks are different from Patents and Copyrights? Trademarks are different from a patent or a copyright. A trademark is a brand used on products and services. A patent typically protects inventions, like new machines, processes or chemical compositions. A copyright typically protects an original artwork, like a painting, song or book. Although trademarks, patents, and Read more about 101 Series – How Trademarks are Different[…]
Protecting a Trademark is Good for Business Trademarks are often a company’s most valuable asset. Many companies invest in building their identity which is used by consumers in differentiate various products they buy. Consumers use trademarks to distinguish products of one company from other companies. Companies use the trademarks to differentiate their products or services Read more about Protecting a Trademark[…]
Copyright in Buildings Generally, copyright protects all works of art including those which are related to a building design and to artwork fixed to buildings. However, because copyrights do not extend to functional works, buildings were not always considered Copyrightable. Currently, the law protects artwork for and on buildings under both traditional copyright law and Read more about Copyright in Buildings for Architects and Artists[…]
Applying for a patent In the U.S. requires that the patent application must be directed towards patentable subject matter and that it be Useful, New and Non-Obvious. Patentable Subject Matter To be patentable, the subject matter of the invention should be directed towards a new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or Read more about Applying for a Patent[…]
Race to File a Patent Application Why would an inventor file a patent application covering a blockchain? Recently, many American and Chinese inventors have filed for patent applications covering blockchain technologies. IBM recently was awarded a blockchain patent (US Pat. No. 10,091,228) for detecting network security breaches. Currently, IBM has 89 blockchain patents, while Alibaba (a Read more about Racing to file a Patent Application for Blockchains[…]
Recently United States, Mexico, and Canada reached an Agreement USMCA (also referred to as the new NAFTA) which will have significant impact on the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights, including digital rights and rebroadcast rights across Mexico, Canada and the U.S. In short, Canada and Mexico have agreed to extend the copyright protection, Read more about USMCA, the new American Trade Agreement (NAFTA)[…]