Difference Between Patents & Trademarks
Patents, trademarks and copyrights all provide intellectual property protection for ideas and inventions. Having a patent or trademark on your product is an asset that gives you the power to market your idea in a specific way. While both patents and trademarks offer legal protection against infringement, they serve different purposes.
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Patents
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A patent is an intellectual property right to exclusively use, make, import, sell and offer for sale an invention for up to 20 years. A patent is granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to the inventor in exchange for public disclosure of the invention when the patent is granted. Patents granted by the USPTO are effective only within the U.S., U.S. territories, and for U.S. possessions. There are three types of patents that can be issued: utility patents, design patents and plant patents. Utility patents are granted to protect useful processes, articles of manufacture, machines, compositions of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof. Examples include medications and computer hardware. Design patents are granted to protect new, original and ornamental designs for articles of manufacture. For example, the design of a running shoe, a glove and the Star Wars characters. Plant patents are granted to protect invented or discovered, asexually reproduced plant varieties. For example, Silver Queen corn, Better Boy tomatoes and hybrid tea roses.
Trademarks
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Trademarks are granted to protect symbols, a word or phrase, names, sounds, or colors that distinguish a good or service. Unlike patents, trademarks can last indefinitely as long as they are in use. For example, the phrase "Have it your way" is registered trademarked by Burger King.
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Purpose
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Once you own a patent or trademark you have exclusive rights to the invention or idea to earn a profit. As a patent holder, you can sell your invention or license your patent to earn a certain percentage of the seller's proceeds. Trademarks are generally used as a marketing tool where inventors can gain profit when the good or service is sold.
Process
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The USPTO handles both patents and trademarks. First check whether your idea has been patented or trademarked before filing an application. In your patent application, you need to specify the type of patent you are seeking. You will need to provide a detailed description of your invention indicating how it was made and how it will be used. This description is referred to as the patent specification. To obtain a trademark, you will need to provide a clear description and illustration of the mark you want registered. Two types of mark formats exist: standard character format or stylized or design format. The standard character format is used to register word(s), number(s), letter(s), or any combination thereof, without specification to any font, size, or color and any design element. The stylized or design format is needed when you want to register a mark that contains a design element and/or word(s) and/or letter(s) having a particular appearance that you want protected. Both patent and trademark applications have filing fees that are not refundable even if you are not granted the patent or trademark. A patent or trademark attorney can help file your application with the USPTO.
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References
- U.S. Patent and Trademark Office: What Are Patents, Trademarks, Servicemarks, and Copyrights?
- U.S. Patent and Trademark Office: Patents
- U.S. Patent and Trademark Office: Trademarks
- LawMart: Copyright vs. Trademark vs. Patent
- U.S. Patent and Trademark Office: Answers to the most frequently asked kids' questions about patents, trademarks and copyrights and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
- Going Legal: The Difference Between Patents and Trademarks; Chet Lawrence; November 5, 2009
Resources
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