Blog

When you want to sell your products or services online or to plan an online strategy you need a domain to your web. And this domain must be representative of your business.

It's crucial for trademarks and domain names to work together in order to generate a good online identity.

In order for a trademark to register in the USA it must either be in use inside the territory of the United States, or registered abroad. For this reason, whenever one files an application with the USPTO, a “filing basis” must be specified, indicating on which basis the applicant registers the trademark in the USA.

Although claiming priority for a trademark application is possible in most countries in the world, it might be one of the least wisely-used tools available to trademark applicants. While some of the big-name corporations’ in-house IP departments have made an art out of the use of the priority claim for their trademark strategies, in general, the process remains poorly understood. 

Aspirin, Kleenex, velcro, hoover, post-it... Chances are, you have used at least one of these words during the last week – maybe even the last day. What else do they have in common? They all are – or started out as – trademarks. You likely knew that about Google and Kleenex, but did you have any idea that “heroin” had started out as a trademark belonging to Friedrich Bayer & Co at the end of the 19th century?

US president Obama’s recent historical visit to Cuba was the visible culmination of the thawing of diplomatic relations between the USA and Cuba. Beyond the geopolitical, however, important economic restrictions were, or are being, lifted. 

As a general rule, registered trademarks will only be recognized in the country where they are registered. However, many countries have territories (territorial dependencies) where a country’s law is completely recognized, only partially recognized, or may even have complete autonomy when it comes to intellectual property or trademark matters.

One of the common misconceptions of people who are not “in the know” about trademarks, is believing they will be able to prevent anyone else from using their trademark simply by registering it. While this has some degree of truth, the statement needs some clarification.

Registered trademarks only grant protection in the country they are registered in, and its territorial dependencies in case these exist. As a general rule, having your trademark registered in one country does not prevent others from registering the exact same trademark in other countries or territories.

The increasing number of trademark government offices that are uploading trademark information to publicly accessible government databases has been a positive step in furthering awareness of the importance and interest that trademark owners should have in protecting their marks. It allows, among other benefits, for greater transparency, offering trademark holders easy access to their trademark information and enabling them to monitor their marks without necessarily having to go through a local attorney or agent. However, like in most things, with the good comes the bad.

There is no point in expressing the importance of China's economy. With an estimated population of 1.4 billion and the fact that an immense portion of the world’s goods are being produced and shipped from China, trademark owners should be marching to protect their trademarks in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau.