The BIG MAC case highlights the importance of evidence of trademark use as part of a brand rights strategy
What can brand owners learn from the trademark dispute between American fast-food chain McDonald's and Irish Supermac's? Even a well-known iconic trademark can lose part of its scope of protection if the brand owner cannot provide sufficiently high-quality evidence of its actual use for all products and services covered by the registration.
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Trademark use and management in social media
In social media, a trademark can be exposed to infringements that weaken its distinctiveness and brand reputation, writes our legal trainee Ida Kemppainen in her blog. She highlights three examples of unauthorized use of trademarks: hashtags, usernames and content that can be confused with another's trademark.
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Register your trademark – don't rely on establishment
[Part 7 of our Brand Rights blog series] Exclusive rights to a trademark can arise not only through registration but in some cases also through the trademark's establishment, although the requirements for establishment are very strict in practice. Our brand rights experts Jani Kaulo and Maria Puronvarsi remind brand owners that registration should always be the primary means of protecting a trademark.
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What does trademark distinctiveness mean and why is it important?
[Part 6 of our Brand Rights blog series] When a company decides on a new brand name to be introduced, it is always worth considering whether the trademark in question is distinctive or descriptive. "Only distinctive trademarks can be registered, meaning only they can be granted exclusive rights," says Jani Kaulo.
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Protecting your trademark through registration – where and how?
[Part 5 of our Brand Rights blog series] Jani Kaulo summarizes the fundamental rules for acquiring a brand right through trademark registration. "A trademark should be registered in countries where the company markets and sells its products or services or manufactures products." Read more about the key basic rules for companies considering trademark registrations.
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