Trademark Registration In Australia: Company Name vs. Product Name

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• Trademark Registration In Australia

• Company Name

• Product Name

2
Introduction

• The advantages of a registered trademark are
  obvious greater assurance that you are not
  infringing on another's trademark, greater
  assurance of the strength and validity of your
  mark, protection against infringement, public
  notice of your registration, and legal grounds
  for trademark enforcement, to name a few.

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• Even with all of these advantages, the question
  of when to register certain marks is not as
  simple as one might imagine. The question of what
  types of marks can and should be registered
  arises frequently, particularly in the retail
  sector. When it comes to registering a company
  name and a product name trademark, the question
  is more particular. As you go on, you'll discover
  when registering each is advantageous.
• Let's look at it more closely,
• When referred to by name, the phrases brand,
  product, and company are frequently used
  interchangeably, yet they are very different
  entities from a legal standpoint. You must be
  aware of these distinctions, or your company,
  brand, and products may be jeopardised in the
  future.

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What is the definition of a company name?

• Your business name (sometimes known as your trade
  name) is the name under which you register to do
  business in your state. It's on your bank
  account, tax paperwork, and other legal
  documents, among other things. Nike, Inc., for
  example, is the company's business name.

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What is the definition of a brand name?

• A brand name is a name given to a group of
  products or services that you provide, or to a
  particular line of products or services that you
  provide. Nike, for example, is the brand name
  that appears on the majority of Nike, Inc.'s
  products. The company name and the brand name are
  the same in this case.
• A business name and a brand name, on the other
  hand, do not have to be the same. Many businesses
  have numerous brands. Apple, for example, is a
  multi-brand firm with products such as the iPad,
  iPhone, iPod, and Mac.

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What is the definition of a product name?

• A product name could be as generic as "vehicle,"
  but with so many products and services on the
  market, firms must come up with more creative
  product names to set themselves apart from their
  competition. In this situation, a product name
  specifies a certain product or service, and when
  the company starts using it, it becomes a brand
  name.
• For example, the Toyota corporation works under
  the brand Toyota, and its goods are automobiles.
  To set itself apart from the competitors, Toyota
  uses the Toyota brand name (in addition to its
  Lexus and Scion brand families), with sub-brands
  such as Corolla, Camry, and Sienna inside the
  Toyota brand family. That's not all, though.
  There are distinct product models such as the
  Toyota Sienna CE, Toyota Sienna LE, and so forth
  within those sub-brands.

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What Does All of This Mean?

• In the end, your company name, brand name, and
  product or service name may or may not all be the
  same. They're all separate things, and whether or
  not they're compatible, they all need to be
  properly cleared for usage and safeguarded, or
  you'll end yourself in costly difficulty in the
  future.
• What you must do is as follows

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A trade mark is not a business name, company name
or domain name
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• Make certain that the product's name qualifies
  for trademark protection
• It's important to remember that any name that
  could be considered generic cannot be
  trademarked. Make sure your product name is
  actually unique - a decent rule of thumb is to
  stick to the trademark strength guidelines. The
  trademark is weaker the more the product name
  describes the product itself.

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• Make sure you're familiar with the requirements
  for filing a trademark for your product
• When you file a trademark application for your
  company name, you must include information on
  what kinds of goods or services your firm sells,
  as well as how the company mark will be used to
  identify those goods or services in commerce.
  Your trademark application for a product name
  will address the same issues, but on a much more
  detailed level, focusing solely on the product at
  hand. It's critical to stay accurate about what
  class (or classes) of products the product
  belongs to, as well as to be detailed, complete,
  and clear about how the product trademark will be
  utilised as an identifier. This is why hiring a
  trademarking lawyer to help you with the
  registration procedure is usually a good option.

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• Apply the same level of vigilance to your
  product's trademark as you do to your
  business's
• Infringement of product trademarks is equally as
  common as an infringement of corporate
  trademarks. Also keep in mind that possible
  infringers may use your product's name as their
  company's name, and vice versa. This is still
  trademark infringement, as is any situation in
  which a consumer can be mistaken about the source
  of goods or services. There are no distinctions
  between product-level trademarks and
  company-level trademarks they are all concerned
  with eliminating customer confusion and
  safeguarding legitimate trademark owners.

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To Summarise

• You should always register a trademark for your
  company's name. It's your company's "face," the
  first point of contact for most customers, and
  the primary method in which you'll be recognised.
  In most circumstances, the danger of confusion is
  considerable, and no firm can afford to lose
  money if potential clients end up doing business
  with someone else when they planned to do
  business with you.

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• It's impossible to imagine a situation in which a
  company would not desire to register their name
  as a trademark. Even if you've been using or
  considering a name that's on the weaker end of
  the trademark strength spectrum (descriptive or
  generic), it's often a better idea to trademark a
  different, stronger name rather than relying on
  the weak provisions that only provide limited
  protection to unregistered trademarks. When you
  have an unregistered mark, the time and money
  spent addressing trademark conflicts far outweigh
  any possible brand equity or other apparent
  reasons to not alter your name to one that is
  easier to register.

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• Is the same response true for product names if
  it's always a good idea to register the name of
  your company? Yes, in the vast majority of
  situations. In order to offer a second layer of
  identity to their products, many corporations
  prefer to create creative, distinctive names.
  These names will frequently fit the criteria for
  strong trademarks they aren't generic or
  descriptive of the product, but rather refer to
  it in a more abstract or unconnected way.
  Consider the various ways beverage businesses
  will refer to generic drinks like cola or
  lemon-lime soda, or cosmetics with distinctive,
  unique labels for specific hues.

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• If your organisation produces products with those
  types of distinctive names, you should consider
  apply for a trademark for them. A registered
  trademark for your items provides further
  protection against imitators and counterfeiters,
  as well as ensures that your product name is only
  linked with your company. Here are a few more
  things to think about while registering
  trademarks for product names.