Trademark Selection
Trademarks include any words, logos, colors, taglines, or any designation of origin. Trademark protections is also available for certain product shapes or configurations.
All trademarks used by a company should take into consideration a selection and clearance process in accordance with the guidelines related to this section. These guidelines are designed to ensure that the trademarks selected or adopted by a company can be used free of infringement, registered, and enforced in all jurisdictions of importance. Critical elements of trademark selection and clearance include:
- Selection of a strong trademark that will provide for strong branding and the opportunity for strong trademark exclusivity.
- Selection of trademarks that allow for securing of any necessary corresponding domain names, both in the US and internationally.
- Ability to federally register the trademark in the US and foreign countries of interest.
- Ability to use the trademark in the US and foreign countries of interest (note – just because the mark is registered does not mean it is necessarily free to be used).
- Choice of a trademark that translates well into foreign languages of interest.
