TRADE MARKS: FAQs
What is a registered trade mark?
A registered trade mark is any “sign” which can distinguish your goods and services from those of another trader. A sign includes, for example, words, logos, pictures or a combination of these.
How do I get a registered trade mark that is valid in the UK?
You need to make an application to either the UK Trade Marks Registry (if you want a UK trade mark) or the EU trade mark office in Spain (for a EU trade mark – which is also valid in the UK).
Is a trade mark expensive to obtain?
An application for a UK registered trade mark costs as little as £170 (valid for 10 years) and is valid for the whole of the UK.
If you want to protect trade marks in the whole of the EU then this costs from €850 for the application.
At BRAND PROTECT, we can guide your application through the legal complexities of applying for trade marks. Our charges can be fixed in advance and start from €350 (in addition to registration fees). This includes a custom specification of goods and services offered by your company. We assist you to overcome competitors’ objections to your application and provide a first class service at a very low cost.
I have invested time and money in developing a good reputation and well known brand name, why do I need to protect this name?
You may gain the right to prevent others from using a confusingly similar trade mark simply by selling goods and services under that brand. However, simply using a brand image may not give you the right to use that brand in the first place. If someone registers either a UK or Community trade mark, you could be forced to stop using that trade mark.
Why do I need a trade mark?
- A trade mark says something about you and your reputation. It is like your name. Choose it with care.
- A registered trade mark gives you extra legal protection to prevent others using your name or a similar brand name
- If you trade in the UK, then everything that you spend on marketing can be ascribed to the value of the registered brand name for accounting purposes. All costs incurred in protecting a registered trade mark are tax deductible.
- Think of some of the trade marks that are sold to other businesses. The companies that purchase those trade marks are interested in the value of the brand and are willing to pay huge premiums to own a well-known trade mark. Unless that brand is registered as a trade mark, it has no sale value.
My company has just completed a re-branding process; do I need to protect the new brand image?
Do you own that image? Are you sure? Has the image been assigned in such a way that you own the image absolutely?
Many companies believe that just because they have paid for an image – or even a website – to be created, that they own the rights to that image or website. It comes as quite a shock when those companies find out that they do not own
them.
We can help in providing cost effective transfer of a trade mark and other rights to the appropriate owner.
My business is very small, why should I spend my money on trade mark protection?
The cost – to a small business – of registering their trade mark is often €500 – €1000 (depending the countries chosen). This can be a large sum of money to a small business and the costs and benefits must be carefully weighed up. If none of your competitors trade under a similar trade mark to yours and are unlikely to do so in the future, then there is little danger that they will cause confusion to your customers and there is no danger that your business would be damaged by this. If there is little likelihood of current or new competitors behaving in this way then you might be advised not to spend the money on registering your trade mark.