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Reader Question: Will my trademark application be denied if…

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"Suzy" asks: If I look on uspto.gov and see that there is a company already trademarked under a name similiar to my company’s name will my trademarked registration be denied?

 

My response:

 

Not necessarily. Just because someone else has trademarked a name similar to yours does not always hurt your chances for getting a trademark.

 

A perfect example is the trademarked name "Delta".

 

There are two companies using this name. First, Delta Airlines. Second, Delta Faucets. How can these two companies claim the trademark for Delta? The answer lies in trademark categories.

 

As of this writing there are 45 trademark categories (divided by products and services). A few examples of categories are machinery products, musical instruments, medical device products, rubber products, restaurant services, communications services, and on and on.

 

Delta Faucets and Delta Airlines are both allowed to use the trademark Delta because they are registered in different categories. Delta Faucets owns Delta in the "Household Goods" trademark category. Delta Airlines owns Delta in the "Transportation Services" trademark category.

 

So to answer your question, it depends on what category the trademark is registered in. That is only one variable. There are other reasons why your trademark will or will not go through.

 

If you want a definitive answer on whether or not your name is eligible for trademark, we can conduct a comprehensive trademark search. There are two good reasons to conduct a search.

 

1) You don’t want to file if someone else owns the mark. It will obviously be rejected, and you’ll have wasted time and money filing.

 

2) You don’t want to infringe upon someone else’s mark. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve talked to a business owner who received a "cease and desist" letter notifying them they are infringing on a trademark AFTER spending thousands of dollars printing up business related items (like business cards, signage, advertisements, menus, etc.). Everything has to be trashed. Imagine spending $1,000, $2,000, $10,000 or more and having to start all over.

 

We can avoid all of these hassles with a simple trademark search. If you’d like more information how trademarks work, you can request to have a free informational package mailed or emailed to you. Just click on the following link – http://ideaattorneys.com/free-patent-information/free_trademark_information_request.html

 

Or give us a call at 1-866-433-2288

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