An Overview:

The registration of trademarks allows enterprises to acquire rights to use, distribute, and assign their trademarks. There are so many new brands and products appearing every day in India that it is a highly competitive market for business owners and company owners. It is important to protect your brand here in order to prevent others from taking advantage of it. With trademarks, goods are promoted also and quality information is provided about the products. You can distinguish your product from your competitors with a trademark. A trademark identifies the owner of a specific product or service using words, phrases, logos, symbols, designs, images, or any combination of these elements.

Why is it necessary to Register a Trademark?

A Trademark Registration provides you with legal protection against others using your brand or logo. A trademark registration is governed by the Trademarks Act, 1999. Trademark registration allows you to claim ownership of your logo, name, or brand. It is essential for companies and individuals to register their trademarks in India in order to prevent third parties from misusing their logos. If a third party violates a trademark registered by the owner, the owner can take legal action against the third party. By registering a trademark, the owner can extend the right of exclusive use to products and services.

Essentially, a trademark is what differentiates your company, product, or service from the competition. It is the intellectual property/intangible asset of your business to register a brand in India. Registration of a trademark in India gives you the right to sue others who try to copy your trademark and prevents others from using a similar trademark. Your investment in building trust and loyalty among your customers is protected when you register trademark registration in India.

Types of Trademarks:

Trademarks can be separated into many types. Below mentioned are the types of trademarks:

• Product Mark: Product marks are used by companies such as Nestle, Amul, and others in order to protect and distinguish their products in the marketplace.
• Service Mark: It distinguishes proprietors from those who provide other services instead of identifying their products. Service marks are different from product marks because they identify the services of an entity rather than its products. As for example, trademarks for network and broadcast services are used to provide services. Applications in trademark classes 35-45 represent service mark like Apple, Google, etc.
• Collective Mark: In commercial activities, collective marks are used to convey information about services or goods that a group of individuals is protecting collectively. It can be an association, a public institution, or a Section 8 companies  who can holds this type of mark. A few examples of collective marks are Reliance Communications and Tata Sons.
• Shape Mark: You can categorize products based on their appearance, identifying and registering them using shape marks. The shape of Coca-Cola's bottle, for example, sets it apart from other brands.
• Series Mark: An example of a series mark would be the McDonald's series mark, which represents a wide range of products, such as McChicken, McVeggies, etc. Different series marks distinguish themselves based on price, quality, goods, and price, but all share a common name and are distinguished by price, quality, goods, and prices.
• Mark Of Geographical Indication: Geographical indication marks are registered under intellectual property rights, such as Darjeeling tea, in recognition of its unique qualities, quality, and reputation. In addition to natural and agricultural handicrafts, it covers manufactured goods originating from a particular area.

Trademark based on their classes:

When choosing a trademark class for your business' products/services, you need to be very careful since it determines the validity of your trademark. It is important to choose a trademark class carefully as it determines whether your trademark is valid for your business' products/services. You must ensure that you can apply for a trademark online under all classes when operating a business that encompasses a wide range of goods and services.

There are several popular trademark classes in India, including:

·         Class - 9 includes Computer Software and Electronics.

·         Class - 25 includes Clothing.

·         Class – 41 includes Education and Entertainment.

·         Class - 35 consists of Business Administration and Advertising.

As you may face more competition for a trademark if you operate in these trademark classes as long as your mark is unique.