Trademark Infringement: What You Should Know

If you are an owner of a company, you better know that the protection of the rights on the use of trademarks is a very important thing. You must be doubtful about any party that tries to use the mark you have made. That is what is known as trademark infringement. Hence, it follows that you comprehend on the essence of trademark registration as it protects your rights to the exclusive use of the mark. It also punishes any unauthorized use of it by a third party.

The Owner's Role in the Detection of the Infringement

In terms of the detection of the infringement of a trademark, the owner's awareness is very significant. It is because the office can only reject a similar or confusingly similar mark if the rightful owner has had it registered before. It is also the owner's duty to regularly scan all gazettes or published journals and then oppose any applications that can be a threat to his own registered mark. It is also possible to be able to prevent the infringement of your mark internationally so follow those international organizations too.

Kinds of Infringement on Your Mark

There are different kinds of infringement that can actually be heaped on your mark. Read on for you to know what they are.

Blatant infringement. This happens when another company labels its services or goods in the same way that you do. Or, it can also be that the spelling is changed a bit for the sake of creating confusion to the public.

Dilution infringement. This happens when someone else uses your trademark without creating any confusion. The purpose of which is to be able to trade on the basis of your mark's reputation and therefore detract from the original one. It is also committed when a third party registers a domain name without any efforts of searching to ensure that the mark doesn't exist yet.

Under the trademark law, there are two principal causes of action. First is the likelihood of confusion. Second is the dilution of the mark.

As with the first, confusion as to the sponsorship, source, and association are among the basic elements. The main goal of a third party is to confuse the consumer regarding the manufacturing or service provider of specific services or goods.

As for the dilution, the offender attempts to lessen the mark's uniqueness.

By all means, trademark infringement must be stopped. It is your role as the owner of a registered trademark. It then turns into a critical issue when you become aware that there is someone else attempting to use your mark.

Hence, as soon as you notice such, you must take an immediate action to put a stop to it. After all, you have gotten the legal rights to the mark. After which, you must gather facts about your claim against trademark infringement. Demand that a third party stops using your mark. You can hire the services of a trademark lawyer in such case. He will guide you on how things should be done and advice you regarding reclaiming your sole rights to the mark.