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Topic: TURNING A REGISTERED COPYRIGHT INTO A TRADEMARK (Read 3415 times) |
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Kaitlin
Newbie
Posts: 39
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Re: TURNING A REGISTERED COPYRIGHT INTO A TRADEMAR
« Reply #5 on: Nov 27th, 2007, 11:16pm » |
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on Nov 27th, 2007, 2:47pm, RASUN wrote:Is it possible to have a logo that is already registerd as a copyright registed as a trademark later on if I am the only author or will their be legal problems since the logo is already registered as a copyright? I just thinking of copyrighting the image first until I get the money to do the trademark.  |
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Yes. You can give notice of your exclusive right to make copies as the author of the logo (through copyright notice, with or without registration) and you can give notice of your claimed rights in the logo as an indentifier for your goods or services (trademark rights).
As the others have explained, both these rights exist without registration. Your ability to enforce those rights, however, is substantially increased by registration.
on Nov 27th, 2007, 4:56pm, RASUN wrote: I want to use the image but how do I prove that I'm the original author of the work if someone decides to steal it off the net or by other means. I heard of the poor mans way but was told that way is no good. I'm trying to protect the work before it is registered. Don't know if this is posible.
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As an interim measure:
1) put a copyright notice ("copyright" or the symbol "(c)", your name, the date of publication) by the logo any time you display it, and "all rights reserved" if you're on the net or otherwise international;
2) put a "TM" next to the logo whenever you use the logo as a trademark, that is, to identify your goods or services as coming from you; and
3) very importantly, KEEP a good SAMPLE of your logo as used as a trademark and KEEP RECORDS of your FIRST USE of the logo as a trademark in commerce and of course records of your first display of the logo to the public, whether or not as a trademark. If the logo is displayed on a web page, get someone other than yourself whom you are likely going to be able to contact in the future to print out a copy and date and sign it. That person could then be a witness at least to the fact that you had created the logo as of that date.
These measures will provide some protection.
*Note that your copyright in the logo does not need to be registered to put a copyright notice there, whether using the (c) or spelling it out in words.
Also, note that you can use the "TM" trademark notice without registering your trademark.
But, note that you may NOT use the (R) symbol with your trademark until it has been registered with the USPTO.
Finally, if placement of the copyright notice is awkward next to the logo, it may be referenced with an asterix.
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| « Last Edit: Nov 27th, 2007, 11:35pm by Kaitlin » |
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CriterionD
Full Member
 
Posts: 202
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Re: TURNING A REGISTERED COPYRIGHT INTO A TRADEMAR
« Reply #6 on: Dec 2nd, 2007, 3:05pm » |
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on Nov 27th, 2007, 8:03pm, DJoshEsq wrote:"Registering the logo as a trademark would simply give the potential to more expand the scope of your trademark protection among other smaller things."
THIS IS INCORRECT AND IS HORRIBLE ADVICE. |
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Care to expand? Expanding the scope of trademark protection is generally, most certainly desirable. Does trademark registration fail to do so? A trademark registration does serve as constructive notice. Thats part of how it can expand the scope of one's trademark protection.
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| « Last Edit: Dec 2nd, 2007, 3:06pm by CriterionD » |
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