trade mark


trade mark

a symbol (a word or pictorial representation) which is used by a business as a means of identifying a particular good or service so that it may be readily distinguished by purchasers from similar goods and services supplied by other businesses. See BRAND NAME.

In the UK, under the Trade Marks Act 1938 and the Trade Marks (Amendments) Act 1984, trade marks can be registered with the PATENT OFFICE. Registration of a trade mark confers a statutory monopoly in the use of that mark in relation to the products for which it is registered, and the registered owner has the right to sue in the courts for infringement of the mark. In order to qualify for registration, a trade mark must be judged by the Patent Office to be uniquely distinctive (i.e. non-identical or confusable with symbols used by other traders).

Trade marks protect the registered owner from unfair competition through piracy and they provide consumers with a means of unambiguously identifying the products of their choice.

trade mark

a symbol (a word or pictorial representation) that is used by a business as a means of identifying a particular good or service so that it may be readily distinguished by purchasers from similar goods and services supplied by other businesses. See BRAND. In the UK, under the Trade Marks Act 1938 and the Trade Marks (Amendments) Act 1984, trade marks can be registered with the PATENT OFFICE as a means of obtaining exclusive rights to the use of that mark.

Trade marks protect the registered owner from unfair competition from piracy and represent an important means of establishing PRODUCT-DIFFERENTIATION advantages over rival suppliers. They also provide consumers with a means of unambiguously identifying the products of their choice. See INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS.