The Importance & Current Context of Trademark Registration in Business Progress & Success Published in weekly Mirror 18 October 2020.
Trademark is a sign or symbol. Any individual word, letter, number, drawing, picture, shape, color, logo type, wrapper or a mixture of these used for differentiating commodity or service may be considered as trademark. Again slogans of advertisement are considered as trademark in different countries. It refers to difference between the products or services from one organization to another organization or owner. A trademark is a guarantee of quality and an indication of source. The essential object of a trade mark is to suggest the origin of goods.
The main objective of trademark is to help the consumers to identify the commodity of a certain company that may be something like service or goods; so that any consumer can differentiate exactly the same type of commodities supplied by any competitor organization. It plays a controlling role in branding or marketing strategy of a reputed product of any organization or owner and in case of the business it creates goodwill and image and positive concept of that particular product in the eyes of the consumer or buyer. A well known trademark is the most valuable business property of any company or sole proprietor.
If we assume that a certain company has been doing a very good business in the market; but if that company does not register its trademark, its business goodwill and investment may be in vain. So, registration of a trademark is must for a company. A well known trademark is the main controller to determine the market price of any commodity or service and for this registration of trademark is very urgent.
At the present time, consumers or the buyers have earned awareness to some extent regarding trademark or trade name. Nowadays we see that the buyers purchase a certain commodity depending on the goodwill and image of trademark and the desired qualitative standard of the product even if the price of the product is high.
And understanding this opportunity, some dishonest businessmen apply for registering a different trademark keeping consistency with their names to some extent.
At present the most valuable worldwide trademarks are AMAZON (Rent), Google (Tech), Apple (Tech), Microsoft (Tech), Samsung Group (Tech) etc. The necessity of registering trademark is infinite to differentiate their own commodities from the competitive organization or to raise the qualitative standard of their own commodities to the consumer. So, trademark registration is important to protect the self reputed trademark of the businessmen. In case of registration of trademark, different countries use the standard of different samples. In our country, audible signs (words) or olfactory symbols (scent) are not permitted for registration but it is done in abroad. Trademarks are registered in Bangladesh in accordance with the provisions of Trademarks Act-2009 and Trademarks Rules-2015.
We generally write ™, sm, after filing of trademark or write ® after getting registration, though there is no legal obligation to mention this symbol, yet the easy way of warning only the dishonest businessmen or to make others understand is to use these symbols. In consequence, the dishonest businessmen may abstain from imitating trademark.
Any organization or company can realize some rights or facilities through registration of their trademarks; such as their business goodwill; qualitative standard of commodity i.e. to encourage the customers to use that commodity; making the source of income through royalty; trademark is an important element in case of business agreement; to create opportunity for the companies to differentiate their own goods; to separate trademarked products or create awareness among buyers and to maintain the standard of commodity and the market price.
Finally this can be said that without the registration of trademarks, investment of the owner of goods may go in vain in case of marketing the goods; because a competing organization using the same or exact trademarks may create confusion among consumers which will damage the reputation, image and business and financial reputation of that particular company. So, the importance of a registered trademark can easily be realized from this discussion.
So it may me said that registering Trademark is the main factor of any successful business or startup any future business plan.
Writer :
Nabendu Bhattacharjee
Advocate, Bangladesh Supreme Court
International Patent & Trademark Attorney
e-mail: advnabendu@gmail.com