How to choose a good trademark
How to choose a good trademark
Selecting your trademark is an important consideration as not all words or phrases are suitable for trademark registration.
A descriptive trademark is not suitable for trademark registration as others offering the same good and services are likely to use the same trademark. For example, if you tried to register a trademark ‘golf club’ for golf clubs, the examiner would say that the trademark describes the goods and is therefore not suitable for registration. You may, in certain instances be able to register a descriptive trademark if you have been using it in trade for a while. Speak to a trademark attorney for more information.
A generic trademark is also generally not suited for registration as it is naturally associated with goods and services in the consumer’s mind.
An arbitrary mark on the other hand is generally suitable for trademark registration. For example, the trademark ‘gold club’ for perfumes may be registrable as such a connotation is not generally made in the course of trade.
The best form of trademark is a suggestive trademark, which suggests your trademark without describing your goods and services, ‘sailing close to the wind’ so to speak. The trademark ‘Netflix’ is a good trademark for describing an online movie rental service.
Last modified:03/10/2013