Trademark vs. patent While patents and trademarks both offer some type of protection, they differ in what intellectual property they cover and how they cover it. While patents prevent other individuals from making or selling your patented item, a trademark protects the words, symbols, logos or similar items that identify your product.
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Patents vs Trademarks, how are there different? A trademark protects a symbol, name, word (s), logo, or design that represent the brand or source of the good, whereas a patent protects an inventor’s invention or product itself.
A trademark consists of a word or group of words or a symbol that indicates a source of products or services. Trademarks are typically composed of a name, label, logo, slogan, colors, or combination of these to refer to a source of goods or services.
That said, a patent is a limited duration property right relating to an invention. Utility patents last for 20 years from the patent application filing date and design patents last for 14 years from the date the patent application is granted. Generally, you cannot renew a patent once the term expires.
When you apply for and receive trademark protection, you can prohibit others from using, producing, or profiting from it. Also, if someone tries to copy your mark or produce a similar one, you have legal rights to sue for damages and to prevent them from using it. Trademarks do not offer any protection on the products that you manufacture.
A trademark protects a symbol, name, word (s), logo, or design that represent the brand or source of the good, whereas a patent protects an inventor’s invention or product itself. For example, lets take an NFL Football, here National Football League (NFL) functions as a trademark and the Football may be patented for it’s special shape.
Knowing the difference between the two is important because you need to know for which protection to apply for. Applying for a patent when you need a trademark or vice versa is the easiest waste to lose money and waste your time .
However, if you didn’t file your application within 12 months of disclosing, you can bypass this requirement by filing a provisional patent application. Filing a provisional patent application gives you an extra 12 months to work on the non-provisional patent application.
Patent. Trademark. Meaning. A government issues this right to patent holders which allows them to exclude others from making, using, or selling their invention. Trademarks are a symbol, words, or words that represent the source of a product or service.
Patents protect inventions by restricting others from making, selling, or using a product that’s similar to the one you’ve patented for as long as the patent is in effect. Once the patent term ends, your invention is no longer protected and falls into the public domain.
Utility patents last for 20 years from the patent application filing date and design patents last for 14 years from the date the patent application is granted. Generally, you cannot renew a patent once the term expires.
Trademarking your company’s logo or catchphrase is important because trademarks make it easier for people to immediately seek out and choose your brand, creating brand loyalty.
Intellectual property is considered to be a creative work by the human intellect, its main purpose is to promote science and technology along with arts, literature and various other creative works and to encourage and reward this creativity.
A trademark includes any device, brand, heading, label, name, word, number, signature, shape of goods, packaging or combination of colours etc. In India it is governed by the Trademarks Act, 1999.
Patents are governed by the Patents Act, 1970 in India. Patents grant exclusive right to the person to exploit his invention for a limited period of time. In other words, during this limited period, the inventor holds the right to exclude anyone else from commercially exploiting his invention.
Trademarks and Patents can be differentiated on the following grounds-
A patent is a license that gives the owner the sole right to produce or sell an invention for a certain period, excluding all other persons and businesses from doing so by way of intellectual property law. An invention is a new technology or product–something that’s manufactured–such as a medical formula, a tool, an instrument, or a spare part.
A trademark is a word, symbol, phrase, color, or image registered as the intellectual property of a person or entity to prevent others from using that mark. Examples of marks that are often trademarked include logos, company names, product names, and slogans.
To help you understand the differences between a patent and a trademark, we’ll use an example. Jane is the owner of a company that manufactures eyeglasses. Jane’s company has a unique name, and their signature frames have a unique product name as well, which help the consumer to recognize their product as belonging to them.
To help you decide whether you need a trademark or patent, the table below lays out the differences and situations in which one is more appropriate than the other.
A trademark is a form of intellectual property such as a phrase, word, device, symbol or design that identifies a product or service from a particular source. Trademarks distinguish one product from another. For example, while many companies can sell soda, only one can use a trademarked name.
A patent granted by the USPTO gives property rights to an inventor in exchange for the invention's public disclosure. A patent doesn’t allow you to make, use or sell your invention but it prevents others from making, using or selling an identical product.
While patents and trademarks both offer some type of protection, they differ in what intellectual property they cover and how they cover it. While patents prevent other individuals from making or selling your patented item, a trademark protects the words, symbols, logos or similar items that identify your product.
To obtain a patent or trademark, you must follow certain steps. The process for obtaining a patent differs from that for a trademark. Here's how to obtain each: