Do you want to get a trademark for your product or service? But are you confused about which trademark you should get? Here are all the details about various types of trademarks that you should check out before applying for a trademark.
Trademark is a symbol, a combination of numerals and characters, or a logo that any organization uses to claim ownership or hold over that particular design or term to represent its services or products. In simple ways, having a trademark of any symbol, logo, or combination of characters means you are the owner of that logo or sign according to law, and any other company, organization, or individual cannot use them. There are many types of trademark is there. If they do so, then it is a punishable crime. If you want to get any trademark, you must register it in government records. A trademark is only considered valid if it is approved and registered in government records.
Using the free trademark search engine provided by Vakilsearch, you can determine whether a trademark is accessible before beginning the registration process.
There are different types of trademarks that you can get registered, such as service marks, shape marks, product marks, collective marks, pattern marks, and sound marks. Even though they are various kinds of trademarks, the purpose of almost all the trademarks is entirely the same. The trademarks’ main objective is to sanction the consumer’s identified services and goods emerging from a particular service provider or manufacturer. So, you might be searching for information about the types of trademarks. Hence, we will share the details about various trademarks in this blog post.
1. Product Mark
A product mark is a type of trademark that is used on any product or good rather than on any service. This trademark is used to identify the origins of a good or product, and it helps in maintaining the excellent reputation of a business or organization.
All the trademark applications that are filed under trademark class 1-34 are classified as product marks because they represent products or goods. The time required for registering a product mark is almost 18-24 months. Some examples of product marks are Nestle and Amul.
2. Service Mark
The service mark is almost the same as the product mark, but the only difference is that it is used on any service rather than on a product. It works for all the non-product items. The main objective of the service mark is that it differentiates between the proprietors and the legal owners of that service.
For example, Taj Hotels and Akasa Airline are providing services to their customers rather than delivering any product. All the trademark applications that are filled under trademark class 35-45 are termed as service marks because they represent no-product items such as services.
3. Collective Mark
These are particular types of trademarks that are owned by associations and organizations. A collective mark is used to notify people about the superior qualities of a service or product that is used to represent a collaboration.
Even individuals or a group of individuals can use this type of trademark to represent that they are togetherly protecting a product or service. This type of trademark holder can be a public institution, an association, or a Section 8 company. In this type of trademark, the standards or the products are normally set by the association owning that trademark.
Other people who want to adopt this trademark owned by any institution or association have to follow some rules and regulations set by the owning company of that collective mark. Chartered Accountant designation is a very commonly known collective mark in India.
3. Certification Mark
A certification mark is a type of trademark that represents the origin of a product, its material, quality, or any other specific details that are provided by the proprietor. The main objective of this type of trademark is to issue standards for any good or product and also guarantee the product to the consumer.
This type of trademark can also be used to show the actual standards of any product by showing that the specific products have undergone different testing and that the product the consumer is receiving is of high quality. Certification marks are generally used on shoes, clothes, toys, electronics, and packed foods. Some examples of Certification marks are ISI marks and ISO Mark.
4. Shape Mark
A shape mark is a particular type of trademark that is used to protect the shape of a specific product or good so that the consumer identifies that product is related to a particular manufacturer and prefers to buy the product from the place or origin only.
The shape of any particular product can be registered only if it is accepted to have a noteworthy shape. For example, A Pepsi bottle or a Dairy Milk chocolate has specific shapes that are identifiable with the brand.
5. Pattern Mark
A Pattern mark is used to protect the pattern of any specific product. All the companies making some specific pattern-based products use this type of trademark to protect the patterns of their products so that no other company can copy them.
A pattern mark is only issued to any company or organization when they succeed in proving that their product is really unique. Pattern mark is mostly used in the fashion industry. Big brands such as Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Fendi, and many others get Pattern marks for their products so that no other brand can copy them.
Even many individual fashion designers such as Manish Malhotra and Sabyasachi also get pattern marks for their products so that no bog brands can use that patterns without their permission.
6. Sound Mark
Any organization or company uses this type of sound mark to protect a particular sound or tune. When a company receives a sound mark for any tune or sound, no other person can use that sound without their permission, and if any still uses them, then it is a punishable crime.
The most famous sound mark in India is the magical tune of the IPL. To obtain a sound mark, the company has to provide originality of that sound, and also, when the people hear that sound, they should quickly identify the product or service that it is related to.
These are some of the most common types of trademarks that different companies, associations, institutions, or even individuals use for their products and services. If you want to apply for any kind of trademark, you should contact an attorney specializing in this field.
Conclusion
An attorney is the best person who can help you in completing all the formalities to apply for trademark. So, these are some latest updates about various types of trademarks. We will be back soon with more such updates. Till then, stay connected to Vakilsearch.
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