Although trademark registration is not compulsory in the UK, it is certainly advisable. Securing a registered trademark protects your brand and provides you with the tools and mechanisms to prevent someone using similar signs and making money off the back of your business.
As part of our recent campaign encouraging businesses to register trademarks, we have set out below the benefits of a registered trademark and the potential pitfalls of relying on an unregistered trademark.
Benefits of trademark registration
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Pitfalls of unregistered trademarks
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- Registered trademarks protect your hard-earned goodwill in the business
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- Trademarks are issued on a first come first serve basis. You may lose the right to register your trademark if someone else registers it first.
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- Registered trademarks also prevent others using your name for the same or similar products/services
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- It is time consuming and expensive to protect against infringement of an unregistered mark. You must rely on common law action of ‘passing off’
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- Registering your trademark gives your products a status of branded goods and adds legitimacy to your product/services
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- To demonstrate unregistered trademark rights, you must demonstrate that your use of the mark has resulted in the mark gaining recognition.
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- You will have the exclusive right to use the trademark in relation to your products/services
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- It is more difficult to sell or licence an unregistered trademark
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- You have the right to take enforcement action against others who illegally use your mark
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- Using unregistered marks may inadvertently infringe on someone else’s registered trademarks. If you are found to be doing so, you will be required to stop using your name/logo.
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- You may sell the trademark either to another company or licence the use of the trademark to create a revenue stream
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- To succeed in a passing off claim, you must show that there has been, or will be, damage to your reputation
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- A registered trademark will add value to your business and open potential opportunities for investment
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- Although it’s possible to licence unregistered trademarks, it is difficult to enforce this without accruing sufficient rights.
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At Berry Smith we are encouraging our clients to think about their branding and what potential trademarks they may have. As part of this campaign, we are offering our brand protection package for a reduced fixed fee, for a limited time only.
To see our current offer to register your trademark click HERE.
For further information or advice on registering your trademark, please contact Abbie Anthony aanthony@berrysmith.com
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