Is Trademark Registration Compulsory for e-Commerce Companies?

Plenty of e-commerce companies are entering the market. They often have a doubt – do they require a Trademark Registration before starting off their business in India. The clear answer to this doubt is “No, Trademark registration is not mandatory”, though, we persistently advise you to file a trademark application at the most primitive stage of your business.

Signs of a Trademark

To entail that a trademark has been claimed by a particular company, companies use one of the following symbols:
•    ™ – This symbol is to indicate pre-existing trademark particularly an unregistered mark.
•    ® – This symbol is to indicate a registered trademark. It is retained for trademarks registered with a proper government agency.
•    ℠ – This symbol is used for the selling services. We have the alternative to use the service mark logo, but many use the ™ as an alternative for simplicity.

Difference between Trademarks and name approval under the Companies Act

Getting your business name permitted by the Registrar of Companies (ROC) is the first step in company formation. The ROC may reject your name if it is similar or identical to another organization that has acquired registration before you.
Though, getting the ROC’s approval does not assure intellectual property rights on the name. Put simply, this means that the name may be approved by ROC under the Companies Act but would still be susceptible to being challenged under the Trademarks Act. Therefore, it is essential to file a trademark application under the Trademarks Act.
 

Filing a trademark in India

For Trademark, registration can be done in India by filing an application at the Trademarks Registry (TMR) with the Office of the Controller General for Patents, Designs, and Trademarks (CGPDTM).
Trademark registration in India is valid for 10 years and can be renewed for another 10 years.
 

Are trademarks registered in India valid globally?

Since e-commerce businesses are not banned in India, it is worth note the global pittance of trademarks. In this framework, the Madrid Protocol is essential.
•    Madrid Protocol allows for a prudent, easy filing for grant of the trademark in a network of more than a hundred nations. Since 2013, India has been an active member of the international trademarks union.
•    While filing under the Madrid novation is done through the trademarks office of India, it has allowed domestic e-commerce companies to guard their trademark across numerous jurisdictions of their choice.
•    The website of Trademark registration is accessible at ipindia.gov.in. Applicant has a choice to set forth the countries where he/she want the trademark to have patronage. Within 18 months, if the authorities receive a no objection, the trademark is considered for registration.
 

Advantages of having a Registered Trademark for E-commerce business

Forty years ago no one would have thought about E-commerce Business. Local retail businesses did not face the same insolence as nationally or internationally or as a brand but the Internet changed that.
There are various causes why one would want more than one trademarks for an e-commerce business including:
 

•    Protection for your business
A registered trademark can protect your company name and other trademarks from being utilized by other organization. It can also guard peerless product logos and names. A business having a registered trademark has clear legal protection against anyone using the registered trademark.

•    Protection against Brand Damage 
A registered trademark can defend your brand from coot and injury. In today’s online world we can guard our brand on a nationally or internationally basis from being illegally used by other people by copying it or counterfeiting the products.

•    Trademark patronage in E-commerce Marketplaces
Some e-commerce marketplaces such as Amazon, Etsy, eBay and Wal-Mart, provide the chance for organizations with a registered trademark. The Brand Registry presents a number of added marketing chances.

•    Performing a Trademark Search
A broad trademark search is an indispensable part of the process in applying for the registration of a trademark. This can avoid tenterhooks and potentially expensive problems in the future.

Conclusion

The office of Controller General not only looks after the registration of Trademark but also conduct an examination of the application for renewal of trademark, aperture the objection filed by any third party against the trademark released in the trademark journal and reside the dispute related to the trademark registration. Thus the Controller Generals’ office is the most significant office dealing with all these problems related to not only Trademark but every other division of Intellectual Property.