Trademarks vs patents

TRADEMARKS:
Trademarks are signs and brands that distinguish goods and services from respective competitors. They can be used as marketing tools so that customers can recognise products or services because trademarks are distinctive or invented words, logos and/or pictures. There is no automatic right to a trademark and the only way to protect it is to apply to register it.

A trademark cannot be registered if it:

• describes the good or service or its characteristic, including its quality, purpose, value or geographical origin;
• is a specially protected emblem;
• has become customary in a line of trade;
• is offensive, against the law or deceptive; and
• is a three dimensional shape.

Why register a trademark:

• it allows for the exclusive right to use the mark for 10 years in theUnited Kingdom, and to be renewed thereafter.
• A registered trademark is one’s property, which can be let, sold, licensed or franchised;
• Allows for an easier process of legal action against anyone who uses the trademark without consent.
• Criminal charges may be brought against counterfeits using a trademark.

PATENTS:
Patents protect a new invention and its technical mechanisms by preventing others from manufacturing, using, copying, selling and importing the invention without permission.
In order to have a successful patent application, the invention must be original and capable of being used in an industry. The inventive step of the invention must not be obvious to persons with knowledge and experience in the field and cannot be a presentation of scientific or mathematical information, a discovery, method or theory, a method of medical diagnosis or treatment, or against public policy.

Why register a patent:

• A patent gives the inventor exclusive rights to their invention;
• If there is no patent there is no protection;
• Once an inventor has a patent, the invention can be used in business, sold or licensed;
• A successful patent should be renewed after every 5th year for a period of up to 20 years protection;

For more info contact Jo-Anne Deeb BA LLB (SA) on +44 (0)207 759 5391
or www.sable-group.com