Grab your tuxedo, a vodka martini (shaken, not stirred, of course), and some James Bond-style swagger – it’s time to spy on your trademark. Or perhaps more precisely, it’s time to spy on what others may be doing to cause confusion with your trademark.
Simply applying for or registering a trademark with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) does not automatically protect a trademark from infringement by others. Trademark owners who wish to maximize the value and protection of their marks should take additional steps to “watch” their marks so that they can proactively respond to any potential infringing uses by others. Infringement of your trademark can take many forms:
-
depending on the facts and circumstances, someone using your trademark without permission;
-
attempting to register a similarly confusing trademark with the USPTO;
-
making false or misleading statements using your trademark;
-
registering and/or using a domain name with your trademark in it; and
-
other uses of your trademark.
These uses by a third party may damage the reputation in our brand and/or company, re-direct traffic to a different website, cause a potential customer to be confused enough to buy a product or services from another party, or even subject a customer to malware or consumer fraud. If another party registers a similar mark with the USPTO, or begins using a similar trademark in commerce, that use by a third party can result in a limit in the scope of protection of your trademark. Any of these actions by a third party can impair the value of the goodwill in your mark. Without watching your mark, these potential infringements can go undiscovered, or be haphazardly discovered when damage to your brand may have already occurred.
Experienced trademark counsel can help you identify one of numerous reputable companies that offer trademark monitoring services. There are different types of watch services available and are generally inexpensive. One type of watch services monitors applications filed with the USPTO or state trademark offices that may be similar to your trademark. Watch services can also monitor trademark filings worldwide. Additionally, watching services can monitor domain names that include your mark, purposely misspell your mark, or use your mark with another descriptive word, all to attempt to redirect consumers to the wrong website. Watching services can also alert you to uses of your mark as a business name, in advertising, or in social media.
A trademark watching service probably will not be quite as exciting as a spy movie, but it will help you ensure that you are taking action to protect the value of your trademark.