Trademarks
- Registering a Benelux trademark
- Searching in the register
- Applying for a search
- Applying for an annual subscription
- Lodging an opposition (objection)
- Applying for changes and renewals
- Registering outside the Benelux
- What is a trademark?
- Is my trademark still available?
- How do I register my trademark?
- How do I maintain the right to my trademark?
- I have a conflict, do I have to lodge an opposition?
- How do I register my trademark outside the Benelux territory?
- Do things yourself or get things done by others?
- What are the fees for trademark registration?
A strong trademark, right from the start
“I can think of enough examples of people who started out small and are now the proud owners of a trademark that is famous around the world. Just think of all those DJs who had their names registered six or seven years ago. Back then no-one thought that the names of famous DJs would become so valuable. Their interests are now protected all over the world.”
What is a trademark?
What can I register as a trademark?
The legal definition of a trademark is very broad: trademarks are all signs which distinguish a company's goods (products) or services. This broad definition with the reference to all signs means that more distinguishing signs can be protected as trademarks than you perhaps may have thought at first. The following are a few examples:
1. Word marks: The name by which a product or service is on the market.2. Device marks: Logos and labels as well as, for example, words in a special font or presented in a special layout (a logo which includes a name).
3. Shape marks: In certain cases, the (three-dimensional) shape of a product or packaging can be a trademark (for example a specially designed bottle of perfume).
4. Colour marks: In exceptional cases, even a single colour or a combination of colours can be a trademark. This is the case when people recognise a certain product or service by its colour. A well-known example are the blue gas tanks used at campsites.
5. Sound marks: An advertising jingle is sometimes so well known that when people hear it they immediately know what it refers to. In such cases the sound may be regarded as a trademark and eligible for registration (in the form of a musical stave).
In practice, 99% of registered trademarks belong to categories 1 (word marks) or 2 (device marks).
However, it is also true that not all signs can be trademarks. If you file a sign that cannot be a trademark, the BOIP is obliged to refuse its registration. More information is available here.