Logos or Words

If your trademark is a logo, you might consider registering in "stylized" form to protect the particular appearance of the mark such as design elements, color or special fonts. The design may also include words. While registration of a mark in standard characters (words, letters, numbers) will provide broad rights, namely use in any manner of presentation - registration of a logo or design does not require a claim to exclusive rights to the words in the logo (i.e. the literal elements of the logo) - but to the graphical presentation of the logo as a whole.

Registration only of a logo and its design elements does not provide the same broad rights as registration of a name or word mark, but generally may be easier to register. For example, if you have a word mark that may be difficult to register because it is descriptive, consider creating and registering a logo that includes those descriptive words. This would result in a federally registered trademark even though you may not have any claim to the words contained within your logo design. However, once registered, the literal elements of the logo (the words) would be found in a trademark search of the USPTO database and could have an extremely powerful deterrent effect on anyone looking to register a similar mark. As a registered trademark owner, you would also have the right to display the ® symbol on your logo - showing the world you have U.S. federal trademark protection.

Alternatively, logo artwork that identifies your goods or services can benefit from the legal protection of copyright registration. While trademark law would protect its use in the marketplace for the specific goods or services, copyright protects the artistic expression of the work. If your proposed trademark is generic or otherwise cannot qualify for trademark registration, consider registering the copyright for its original logo artwork.

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