How do i copyright a business name for free [Definitive Guide]



Last updated : Aug 19, 2022
Written by : Celsa Bouchey
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How do i copyright a business name for free

How do I copyright my business name?

Registering a trademark for a company name is pretty straightforward. Many businesses can file an application online in less than 90 minutes, without a lawyer's help. The simplest way to register is on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's Web site, www.uspto.gov.

Do I need to copyright my small business name?

There's no legal requirement for you to register a trademark. Using a business name can give you 'common law' rights, even without formally registering it.

How do I trademark a name and logo for free?

Can you trademark your logo for free? You can not register a trademark for free. However, what you can do is establish something known as a "common law trademark" for free. You can do this by simply opening for business.

How can I get the rights to a name?

  1. Common law usage: just start using the name in commerce. Once used, you've established common law rights.
  2. State trademark registration: you'll need to apply through your state's Secretary of State Office.
  3. Federal trademark registration: Simply the best.

Can two companies have same name?

A company applying for incorporation is also required to ensure that no identical trademark and/or domain name is already registered in the same name. While conducting availability searches for trademarks, many proposed marks get rejected because of similar existing company names.

What's the difference between copyright and trademark?

Copyright protects original work, whereas a trademark protects items that distinguish or identify a particular business from another. Copyright is generated automatically upon the creation of original work, whereas a trademark is established through common use of a mark in the course of business.

Can I register a business name and not use it?

When you register a company name at Companies House, it is protected by law so no other business can use it. Trading names do not receive this protection, which means that if someone wanted to register your trading name as a limited company, they could do so, whilst also demanding that you stop using it.

Should I get an LLC or trademark first?

4. Should you get an LLC first or trademark? Yes, you should get an LLC first before a trademark because the trademark application will need to identify the LLC as the trademark owner. You should create an LLC or business entity before you file a trademark application.

What happens if someone trademark your business name?

Trademark Registration Then, the owner can face a lawsuit for using the same name as someone else even if the second party registered a trademark for the company after the first owner created the company. These situations usually require the services of a lawyer to both understand and pursue.

Do I need to copyright or trademark my logo?

How to legally protect your logo design. To protect your logo, you need a trademark or service mark (trademarks are generally used for products, while service marks are usually applied to services). You should not copyright or patent a logo design.

What is the cheapest way to trademark?

The basic cost to trademark a business name ranges from $225 to $600 per trademark class. This is the cost to submit your trademark application to the USPTO. The easiest and least expensive way to register your trademark is online, through the USPTO's Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS).

How long does a trademark last?

A federal trademark lasts 10 years from the date of registration, with 10-year renewal terms. Between the fifth and sixth year after the registration date, the registrant must file an affidavit to state that the mark is still in use.

How long does it take to trademark a name?

Usually, the process takes 12 to 18 months. Registering your trademark is a complex procedure that involves your application moving through various stages. Learning about each stage in the process will help you understand why getting a trademark takes as long as it does.

Can you trademark your own name?

You can trademark your name if it has business or commercial value. Trademarking your name gives you an additional brand and keeps others from using your name. To trademark your name you must meet specific requirements with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

Can you trademark a name already in use?

If somebody else is already using a mark that is reasonably similar to yours, it's likely that your application for trademark registration will be denied. United States trademark law requires trademarks to be entirely unique from any other than are currently in use.

Is my business name copyrighted?

You can search all applied-for and registered trademarks free of charge by using the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)'s Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS). If your mark includes a design element, you will have to search it by using a design code.

Is it worth trademarking a name?

Protect Sales: Registering your business name for a trademark protects your sales by preventing consumer confusion. For example, if another company uses the same or a similar name to yours and sells a similar product, customers might think they're buying from you instead of your competitors.

How do I check if my company name already exists?

In most states, the website of the state business filing agency includes an online entity name check tool. You can use the online tool to search business names and find out whether another business is already using the name you have chosen.

Does a copyright expire?

The term of copyright for a particular work depends on several factors, including whether it has been published, and, if so, the date of first publication. As a general rule, for works created after January 1, 1978, copyright protection lasts for the life of the author plus an additional 70 years.

What can you not trademark?

  • Proper names or likenesses without consent from the person.
  • Generic terms, phrases, or the like.
  • Government symbols or insignia.
  • Vulgar or disparaging words or phrases.
  • The likeness of a U.S. President, former or current.
  • Immoral, deceptive, or scandalous words or symbols.
  • Sounds or short motifs.


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How do i copyright a business name for free


Comment by Joshua Garib

here's a new question from quora how do i copyright a brand name i'm andre minkov the founder of trademark factory and here's my answer to this question well you kind of don't you cannot copyright a brand name copyright is also part of intellectual property a type of intellectual property but it's very different from trademarks copyright protects content protects books music photographs videos software but it does not protect brand names copyright is not designed to protect short phrases it's not designed to protect individual words is not designed to protect brands is not designed to protect brand names the only thing that the only type of intellectual property that really protects brands is trademarks and that's what you have to use if you want to protect your brand name so there's no reason in the world you would be copyrighting your brand name but good for you for thinking in terms of yes i need to do something about my brand name so that i own it so if you do want to do something for your brand that would really allow you to secure it as yours you would do that through a trademark i hope this answers your question and if you haven't done so yet make sure you subscribe now and get notified whenever the next video goes live and more importantly if you have more questions about branding about trademarks that you want me to answer make sure you post a comment below and i'll shoot a video just like this one and until then i will see you you in the next video


Thanks for your comment Joshua Garib, have a nice day.
- Celsa Bouchey, Staff Member


Comment by sochantreP

today we're learning all about trademarks what trademarks are common trademark misconceptions if it's worth you even trademarking your name and if so the exact steps you need to take to get a trademark if that sounds good let's get right into it hey i'm quran from life accounting the number one firm for financial education i need you to do me a favor though like this video for me if you want us to create more content about trademarks and subscribe to the channel for more videos like this let me know in the comments if you're going to trademark your name or not so what is a trademark a trademark is a word slogan phrase symbol or design that identifies and distinguishes the source of one good from another and they're issued and managed through the u.s patent and trade office also called the uspto trademarks are intended to minimize confusion that could happen if two or more businesses have the same symbol the same slogan the same logo or the same name so why register a trademark you're actually not required to register a trademark to have legal protection as soon as you begin selling your product or service you become a trademark owner and can enforce your trademark in court if necessary so simply by using your trademark your name your logo your slogan etc you establish rights called common law ownership which might make you wonder why do people go through the hassle to register a trademark well the downside to common law ownership and not registering a trademark is that it only protects you within your geographical region which leaves your trademark vulnerable and eligible for use outside your region if you open a bakery in new york common law does not stop someone from opening a bakery with the same name and the same logo in california if you want stronger nationwide rights and the ability to sue someone federally for infringement you want to register your trademark at the federal level with the u.s patent and trade office additionally getting a trademark allows you to defend your brand against counterfeit products domain squatters and gives you the freedom to use the registered symbol with your logo in total there are four legal reasons called a filing basis to register a trademark and you're required to specify the basis you choose on your application the two most common are the intent to use basis meaning your business has not started using your trademark yet maybe you haven't started your business yet but would like to get the application process started note that while you can apply under an intent to use basis your mark will not be registered until you convert the application to one based on the second filing basis which is use in commerce using commerce basis meaning you are currently using the trademark while selling or transporting goods and services all right let's talk about strong versus weak trademarks there are actually different types of trademark and depending on the type it may be easier to get your trademark approved or you may be denied completely so let's explore the different types first is the generic mark generic marks actually do not qualify for a trademark as they are marks that are words and phrases commonly used when conducting business in that industry for example the word water water by itself cannot be trademarked as it is a common noun that should be able to be used by all businesses who sell water then you have the descriptive mark descriptive marks describe a product or its ingredient quality characteristic function feature purpose or use an example would be high definition for tvs in general descriptive marks do not qualify as a trademark unless it becomes so popular indistinguishable that the word becomes a secondary meaning for the brand examples where this has worked is the sharp brand of televisions next is the suggested mark suggestive marks suggest something about the product or service without actually describing the product or the service examples include airbnb or the car company jaguar for this reason suggestive marks generally do qualify for a trademark as they are not common nouns for that industry let's go back to jaguar as an example a jaguar suggests speed and sleekness but most people do not think of a car company when they hear the word jaguar then there's the phantom fill mark fanciful marks also known as coin marks are words or phrases that did not exist before because of this fancy fold marks are the easiest type of marks to obtain and they offer the widest net of protection nike or google are amazing examples of a fanciful mark then you have the arbitrary mark an arbitrary mark is a word or phrase that includes a common phrase but not one that is associated with an attribute of the brand think about the term apple though the word is common it has nothing to do with computers arbitrary marks are also easy to obtain then there's a special category and type of mark called the service mark a service mark is similar to a trademark but distinguishes businesses that provide services from businesses that provide goods many companies like apple or starbucks will have both a service mark and a trademark as they provide products and services now other trademark types do exist like a certification mark that shows products and services or goods have met a standard and collective trademarks that indicate membership in a group or distinguished products and services of members from non-members now let's look at a few unacceptable trademarks yup let's briefly talk about things that are not trademarkable wait is that a word let's talk about the things that cannot be trademarked once again generic trademarks as previously mentioned generic trademarks are words or phrases that are used commonly when conducting business in that industry as an example ben and jerry's can't trademark the word ice cream you also cannot trademark existing trademark you're not able to trademark a word or phrase that is already a registered trademark within the same class of products or services for example multiple piece of businesses are not able to register the name dominoes but both domino's pizza and domino sugar can trademark the word domino as they are not in the same class of goods and services and lastly you can't trademark similar unregistered trademarks yup even trademarks not registered are often recognized by the federal government once again the goal of trademarks is to limit confusion and if another business in your industry or state has the same name your trademark application can be denied by the way if you like to learn the right way to form your business fund your business and understand the finances of your business use the 30 off coupon in the description it's for the money smart startup course and that coupon code expires soon all right let's talk about the steps to apply for a trademark step one is to determine approval eligibility you're going to want to consider the trademark category you are applying for to determine the likelihood that you will be granted the trademark in the first place in general marks that are unique and descriptive have the best chances the last thing you want to happen is t


Thanks sochantreP your participation is very much appreciated
- Celsa Bouchey


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