What is a Trademark?
Trademark is a mark or indication which is used in the course of a business by the concerned person to distinguish his goods or services from another person. Trademark is a mark in the form of a device, letter, logo, numeral, signature, words, or combination of words or a combination of the above-mentioned things. There are so many things that can be called a mark and every mark is used to indicate or signify the goods or services in the course of trade which is known as a trademark but to get the registered trademark, the brand name needs to have the capacity to distinguish the goods or the services of one person from the goods and services of another person.
When a person holds the exclusive right of a trademark and uses it in the course of the trade; the reputation of his business, quality of his products, and his origin can be recognized by the consumer. From the perspective of a consumer, when a person affixes the trademark on his goods or services, the consumer does not want to get cheated or deceived by the existence of deceptively similar trademarks or by the existence of confusingly similar trademarks.
Who is eligible for Trademark registration?
Trademark registration in India can be filed by any individuals, joint owners, partnership firms, LLP, an Indian company, a foreign company, trust, or society. Documents submission depends on the category you fall within and accordingly Vireza Onfiling experts will help you. What are the different types of trademarks in India?
In India, there are various types of trademarks for which you can get registration. Let’s understand them one by one.
- Product Mark: As the name suggests this mark is used for a product or a good rather than a service. It helps in product recognition and maintains the goodwill of the business. Under trademark class 1-34, goods are classified.
- Service Mark: This is similar to product mark but this is used for the services and not for the goods. It helps in differentiating the business services of the various business owners.
- Collective Mark: This mark represents a group of individuals who collectively use their mark for protecting the goods and the services. For eg. any association, public institution, or section 8 company.
- Certification Mark: This is a sign which denotes the origin of the product, material, quality, or other specific details issued to the proprietor. These are seen on toys, electronic products, packed food, etc and represent the certification.
- Shape Mark: This mark is used for the protection of the shape of the product so that customers can easily recognize specific products.
- Pattern Mark: This type of mark is for the specifically designed pattern which distinguishes one product from another.
- Sound Mark: This mark is used for the protection of sound logos which is also known as audio mnemonics, for eg. the tune of IPL, Apple iPhone, and more.