Getting your trademark - I

We live in a day and age where competition is intense. With manufacturing costs going up and the value of the money depreciating, companies are constantly competing to gain market share at the expense of the other.

In such a competitive environment, differentiating yourself from your competitors has become crucial to establish and maintain your position in a competitive market.

Differentiation is only possible by getting exclusive rights over your name and logo – this is where trademark protection comes in.

First, what is a trademark?

A trademark is a word, a group of words or a symbol used to represent a company or a product. So for instance, in the case of Nokia, it has multiple trademarks – the name “Nokia” itself, the hands joining symbol which represents its caption “Connecting People” and the phrase “Connecting People”.

Each of these has been trademark protected by Nokia in each and every environment in which it operates.

Why should you get a trademark?

Anyone running a commercial enterprise should get a trademark for their product or service. And you should get a trademark for not just your name, but also your logo or anything else which you wish to protect, such as a caption or slogan.

To repeat the example above, if your name is Ravi Textiles, and you have a distinctive logo and a slogan – “Clothing for a nation”, you should get trademark protection for all three.

How much does it cost?

The cost of trademark protection can be divided into legal fees and government fees. The Government charges Rs 3,500 per class for trademark applications. So if you want to protect your name, logo and slogan in one class alone, you will have to pay the Government Rs 10,500. (We will be studying what classes are in the next part). The legal fees will vary from profession to profession.

How long does it take?

Typically, applying for a trademark takes between four and seven days and you get an acknowledgement document and a trademark application number within a maximum of seven days after making the application.

After that, the trademark form is scrutinised and an objection report is prepared within a year of you making the application for the trademark.

After the objection report is prepared, you will be called into a ‘hearing' if your trademark application is not approved, and you will have to explain why your logo/name should be protected. For instance, you can show that you have been using the trademark for a long period of time and have many customers, and so on. (i.e. you must show usage).

The entire process of getting a trademark can take up to 24 months or even more.

If anybody opposes your trademark application, the opposition procedure could itself take up to 24 months or more, making the entire procedure about four years.

In the next part, we shall be studying trademark classes and helping you choose classes for your trademark. Normally, it is recommended that you file under multiple classes to get maximum protection, so choosing classes wisely is important.

To be continued

(This column has been contributed by vakilsearch (www.vakilsearch.com), an online legal guidance and legal solutions partner)