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Do I need to have a registered trademark in every country I do business in?
On the Internet, this would be a lot of countries!
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There are companies out there that can handle the paperwork, but you generally need some kind of legal advocate in each jurisdiction. And there is now a protocol (called the Madrid Protocol) that allows you to take a trademark application from one country and forward it to a bunch of others if they have agreed to the protocol. A list of the member countries is here.
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Sadly, for most industrial countries, the answer is yes. In the US, you can have some common law trademark rights but most nations require registration to have any rights. And to make matters worse, if someone else beats you there, it can often be expensive to dislodge the name from them and get it back to you.
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Inappropriate?Sadly, for most industrial countries, the answer is yes. In the US, you can have some common law trademark rights but most nations require registration to have any rights. And to make matters worse, if someone else beats you there, it can often be expensive to dislodge the name from them and get it back to you.
3 people say
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Inappropriate?Ahh, sucks. Are there tools or organizations that can assist in that process, or do just have to hire an expensive lawyer? -
Inappropriate?I should add, on the other hand, that registration has its benefits. For example, someone could claim they own a trademark and start harassing folks who use the name (especially those who criticize them), but if they aren't listed in the trademark registry of a country that requires that, then you can call them on it.
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2 people say
this answers the question
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Inappropriate?There are companies out there that can handle the paperwork, but you generally need some kind of legal advocate in each jurisdiction. And there is now a protocol (called the Madrid Protocol) that allows you to take a trademark application from one country and forward it to a bunch of others if they have agreed to the protocol. A list of the member countries is here.
5 people say
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Inappropriate?So how does this play out when two companies from different countries each have the same trademarked name (in their respective countries) and are both doing business online?
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Inappropriate?Ahh, one of my favorite situations. Check out this page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budweiser. There are two companies called "Budweiser" that make beer -- one in the US and one in the Czech Republic:
* Budweiser (Anheuser-Busch) from Anheuser-Busch in the United States
* Budweiser Budvar from Budějovický Budvar in the Czech Republic
As I understand it, they each have valid trademarks in their own jurisdictions and the other companies, to the extent they want to sell beer in those countries, have to do it under a different brand name.
2 people say
this answers the question
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Inappropriate?Wow. So interesting. So what do they do in neutral countries in which they both sell their product?
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