C.Trademarks/Brands

Trademarks protect company names, logos, slogans, and sometimes product shape or packaging. A distinctive, easily recognized trademark can become one of the most valuable assets a company owns - its brand. Because of their value-adding potential, most companies put considerable effort into choosing their company name and the trademarks for important products. If a company operates internationally, or plans to, it will be necessary to search the trademark lists (or “registries”) in multiple countries, because each country maintains its own list of registered trademarks. Sometimes a business that has operated for many years fails to register any trademarks until a competitor or other problem appears. It may not be too late to get some protection in some countries, but it is far wiser to register very early on.

Trademarks can serve not to just to identify a single product, but to define and protect a larger business structure or “ecosystem”. Most franchises make use of trademark licensing: in a typical setup, a national brand (such as KFC, or Panda Express), or franchisor, licenses its brand to local operators (franchisees) in exchange for a percentage of local profits. Trademarks can also be used to indicate product compatibility (“Dolby sound” for audio players, for example), or that a product meets quality of performance standards set by an industry group.