Trademark Search

    An absolutely free Trademark search can be performed at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) website. Results that one obtain while performing Trademark search will display both Pending and already Registered Trademarks (this is different from the Patent search). Because of this fact, an inventor can perform an extremely thorough search on his own with good results.

In addition, an inventor can use services of the Patent Attorney who will perform Professional Trademark Search. The reason that this method is preferred is because these people are professionals and have knowledge of inside tricks. The results obtained by Professional Trademark Search companies are very thorough and performed very quickly.

Another reason why it's important to seek a Professional is the following - even if the trademark already exists, you might still use one! Why? If Mark already exists, but on the product that is different from yours, one may use the same Trademark name. For example, say an inventor designed a new industrial drill and wants to Mark it as "Blue-Ribbon". He performs a thorough USPTO database search and determines that the same Trademark already exists, but on a baby toy. Obviously these two inventions/ideas have nothing in common and the inventor should be able to register his Mark. However, some cases will not be this clear-cut and you will need an opinion of an expert.

Trademark Availability

    USPTO Trademark database displays a very important status next to each Trademark - its status. And the status may be either Active or Inactive. An Active status indicates that the Mark is in use; Inactive status means that the Mark, in all likelihood, is not in use. However, even if the Trademark is marked as Inactive (or Dead), it doesn't mean that the inventor can go ahead and claim it! Keep the following in mind - even if the Mark is no longer used in Business (or Commerce), one cannot presume that that the registrant has abandoned it (unless he notified USPTO that the Trademark is abandoned). Once again, in cases like these, in pays to seek Professional Help. Patent Attorneys are trained professionals and they will perform the investigation for you! In addition, just like I mentioned before, even if Trademark already exists, it doesn't mean that one cannot reuse the same name, as long as the original mark applies to different product.

Madrid Protocol

    When USPTO grants inventor a Trademark, its protected is extended all over United States. If the user wishes to receive international protection, he can do so at USPTO under Madrid Protocol. The filing process is rather straightforward – simply file one application with Trademark Office!

Summary

As one can see, a thorough knowledge of Trademarks is extremely valuable to everyone who is considering marketing and selling his idea or invention. The purpose of the article was to give reader a brief overview of Trademarks and point them in a right direction - my recommendation to the reader is to visit USPTO website and read more on the fascinated topics of Trademarks.