The Do’s and Don’ts When Registering a Trademark in India
Registering a Trademark in India For newly initiated business ventures often seems to be a tiring process. Before giving an application for Trademark it is really important that the applicant puts in due time and effort to make an in-depth study of all facts and figures related to trademark he proposes to authorities.
To help you know the procedural way of going with trademarks legally, we have scripted a short summary and some important Do’s and Don’ts related to trademark filing, so that each time you acquire a need of new trademark you get saved of chaos related to excused possibilities of trademark rejections.
Understanding Basics of Trademarks
Trademarks are distinct identity providers of business which in the form of words, logos, figures, taglines, 3d shapes etc represent a distinct intellectual property and individuality of business from other standing competitors in the market. They protect business strategies and its unique policies from duplicity blunders of competitors.
Registration of Trademark In India
The process of registering a trademark in India is quite lengthy and calls for a deep research and legal aid of professionals. The trademark application once suggested and approved by business officials goes to a concerning professional business lawyer or some registered person (like CA/CS) to draft all modifications and amendments required in it as per Trademark act. It requires them 2 to 4 days to study all checks and mistakes in the application and to forward it to trademark office for registrar approval. The registrar holds the right to either accept or reject the application based on grounds of trademark act suitability. The final approval to such application might take 18 to 24 months.
Till applicant receives a final verdict on its trademark, it holds the right to use a ‘TM’ symbol with its logo or brand name applied.
Just after receiving the approval of authorities the following ‘®’ symbol could be used with the trademark for legally representing people that the proposed trademark has been legally authenticated and is ready to be used.
Also Read: Reasons for Rejection of Trademark Application
Some Do’s When Registering a Trademark in India
- Avail the mark at earliest: Business valley in India accounts for a new start-up each day which also leads to numerous similar trademark applications. Registered trademarks help an entrepreneur to sue infringer of business identity legally just at its beginning stage. Unregistered marks have no rights to file a dispute against competitors who got it registered first. So, it is always recommended to register and present the trademark to the registrar as soon possible.
- Choose wisely opt smartly: The trademark to be a first presenter of business needs to be well attractive and appealing. Since it is going to be added to walls of the business, it should be eye catchy and fancy to people. Informative marks or usage of common words might bore people but it is always recommended to add something of business touch logo, name or tag-line, to make it more thoughtful in memories of people.
- Search for Trademark Ideas: The most crucial step before considering a particular trademark is conducting a thorough research over the existing competitor’s marks and related policies to it. This will avoid any unintentional claim of any infringement of the new trademark application. Research not only includes taking up ideas for design or text used but also the policies added on by competitors to protect their mark in such category.
- Assure Maintenance: Constant updates in policies of newly applied trademarks should be timely recorded, which can use in taking care of future expansion prospects of the business.
Some Don’ts When Registering a Trademark in India
- Avoid Common words and Plurals : Try to avoid common words and plurals while deciding for business names and logos ,like preferring Action Cycles than using plural names like Actions Cycles or Action’s Cycles for representing a company name of a cycle manufacturer dealing in cycles with multiple variants or designs.
- Choose the right category: More than 40 good and service categories have been specified in Trademark Registration rules in India. It is important to know and study each category carefully before submitting a trademark application. Best practice in course would be keeping an eye on competitor policy while choosing the product type before specifying it for a trademark.
- Avoid Nouns: Never go for recognized names and marks. If in case you find a similar brand name or some substitute in name existing in the market then proceed for a descriptive trademark. Furthermore, it is advisable to prefer coined words which never how to indicate what can be the product but may specify the business objectives and unique stand in the market.
For registering a trademark a due course is to be followed by an applicant. Trademarks not only work as a silent protector of business identity but also builds credibility on people to transact freely with their goods and services provided. Always a smart way to deal with trademarks would be researching well on competitor’s policy of trademarks and conducting a consultation schedule with market professionals before getting into final trademark application.