Trademark symbol (™) is a sign that demonstrates that the preceding figure, logo, or text is a trademark. In other words, the character (™) often represents the status of a company or organization as a personal mark of business. There are different types of trademarks. One can drop down the category of trademarks into registered and unregistered trademarks.
Let’s take a glimpse of the official definition of Trademark and Trademark symbol:
Introduction to Trademark
Table of Contents
By definition, Trademark or Trade-mark is a cognitive property that helps a business to gain individuality of its business sign, logo, or idiom (business tagline). These signs, symbols, or expressions describe one’s product and services and help them stand out in the market. A business that holds trademark announces that no other business, individual or legal entity can acclaim a logo, design, or idiom as same or nearly similar to their business. Thus, it is significant to note that a company must hold a trademark to prevent its business’s designful identity against cyber pilferage.
An unregistered trademark symbol in the keyboard is written as “(™).” A registered trademark symbol in the word is written as (®). Hence, trademark symbol registration matters while you carry an intellectual property with your business that attaches to its name & fame.
Introduction to Trademark symbol
Trademark vs. trademark symbol. These two are different. To begin with, a trademark is a cognitive mark that identifies a business. However, a trademark symbol is a perceptible symbol that shows that a sign, expression, or logo is the company’s personal intellectual property. It is noteworthy to mention that a business cannot use (®) trademark symbol if its business logo, design, or expression is unregistered, a.k.a not registered with any official government agency. But, the (™) is used when for the unregistered logos, designs, and expressions.
Trademark symbol Vs. Servicemark symbol
A trademark is different from a service mark. Trademarks have often been used when the logo, sign, or expression describes copyright on the product. Whereas, a service mark is used when a similar category of creative expressions or sign describes copyright on the services offered by a business. A trademark symbol on the keyboard is written as ™ in superscript. However, a service mark symbol on the keyboard is written as SM in superscript.
What are the types of trademarks or trademark symbols?
There are many forms of trademarks, check out the following list of a trademark that is based on the product, service or designation that they describe:
Word trademark symbol
When it comes to prominent brands like Marco Polo, the company requires a Wordmark in order to prevent the entire word, a.k.a “Marco polo” against pilferage. Earlier, in the 1200s, the brands were not protected by trademark symbols and all businesses were free to acquire other’s ideas of brand logos, signs or taglines.
In comparison to earlier times, today, a company provides official permission to any other store, individual, brand or legal entity to utilize its intellectual property.
3D Mark
3D or Three-dimensional Mark is a type of mark when a company or creative individual designs a 3D figure for its business. For example, a liquor company introduces an unusually shaped-bottle and thus, this company remains obliged to register for a 3D mark. In this way, this bottle remains the personal property of a company. Thus, no other company or individual or legal entity can use it in the absence of permission from the official authorities.
Pattern trademark symbol
When a company, individual or legal entity finds a pattern that is unique and holds a piece of evidence that this pattern is repeating from time to time. In this case, the respective company, individual or legal entity holds the right to sign up for a pattern mark. However, the government officials verify such a pattern before protecting it by pattern mark and make it an official representation in your company’s or brand’s name.
Hologram Mark symbol
Hologram mark is a type of trademark which is used to protect a three-dimensional logo which also reflects movement in a video graphics file. It is noteworthy to mention that not all businesses pass for a Hologram mark until or unless their logo reflects small or average-leveled holographic effects. Apart from this, it is significant to submit official video graphic evidence to acquire a Hologram mark for your business’s 3D logo, design, sign or expression.
Multimedia Mark
In comparison to the Hologram mark, the multimedia mark is quite a gilt-edge trademark symbol. This trademark protects a design, sign, logo or expression that also consists of an image or sound or both. Thus, if you have a multimedia mark, no other individual or company holds any right to utilize your personal image or sound.
Note: Trademark symbol that only protects or copyrights sound is called a sound trademark. However, a trademark symbol that copyrights an image that reflects position is called a position trademark.
Motion Trademark symbol
Motion mark is a type of trademark or trademark symbol in photoshop. It copyrights a logo, design, or expression that keeps shifting or moving from one side/location to another. For example, animated logotype requires a motion mark for its protection against pilferage. Coupled with the multimedia representation of motioning logos, design or expression, a company can easily demand copyright on its creation.
Note: Following is the list of Trademark symbols in India, take a look:
- Nestle and Amul-the taste of India are examples of Product mark
- Trademark Symbol on Mac and google is a service mark
- Reliance Communications and Tata Sons hold a collective mark
- ISO is an example of the Certification mark
- Coca Cola and KitKat are perfect examples of Shape Mark
What are the benefits of Trademark symbols?
Protection of brand by using a trademark sign
This is one of the prime benefits of trademark symbols. Any business that enters the national or international business industry, its logo, design, and expressions become public. In particular, everyone can see it. Hence, they can copy their unique and creative logos by searching it online. For the most part, the recognition of any brand depends on its logo or expression. Thus, by registering for a symbol, a business can claim full copyright of its physical as well as intellectual property.
Communicate with competitors with ™®
In comparison to your competitor, your brand must develop its unique identity in the market. However, in the absence of a trademark symbol, a business creates hurdles for itself. It is because the competitor becomes stronger. How? If your competitor puts a government registered branded product among the customers, your brand will lack acceptance among the same targeted audience. Thus, trademark symbols communicate competition to those brands which offer substitutes of products and services traded by you.
Copyright Law & Order succession
As per the laws in India or any other country, a company cannot sue another individual, company or legal entity for stealing its idea, creative remark, logo or expression in the absence of a trademark registration symbol. In conclusion, a trademark remains a major constituent in order to protect your creative logo or expression in the eyes of law.
Besides, a company can further suffer the consequences of not registered for a TM(s). In particular, consequences such as no lawful compensation from the end of pilferers of your creative idea or logo.
Brand Identification by TM symbol
How do you recognize Nike? Of course, by its “check” logo. Similarly, the public recognizes McDonald’s by its creative “M.” In this case, it is quite clear that for brand identification in the market, the public recognizes logos or expressions instead of names. But, when there’s no trademark symbol to your logo, anyone is free to use it for its purposes.
The aforementioned, law & order also mentions that there are no barriers to the utilization of any logo, design, image or expression. This is applicable to those intellectual properties that are unregistered. Thus, if you want to protect the identity of your brand, the TM(s) remains a significant element.
General FAQs for trademark symbol
How do you type a trademark symbol on a Mac?
To type a trademark symbol on mac, follow the given instructions:
Step1: Press the “option” key and hold it.
Step2: Press the “2” key and hold it.
Step3: Press “™” if you want to type an unregistered trademark symbol on the mac keyboard. For example, Microsoft ™.
Step4: Press “R” Key if you want to type registered trademark symbol on mac. For example, Microsoft ™®
By using these instructions you can also type trademark symbol facebook.
Note: Trademark symbol windows shortcut for unregistered trademark symbol(s) is Alt+0153. Otherwise, it is Alt+0174.
When can you use the ™ Trademark symbol?
The ™ symbol is usable in the following conditions:
- When the intellectual property of a business, individual, or legal entity is unregistered.
- When the registration for the intellectual property is pending with the government agency.
Note: The visible marking of the symbol (™) is different from writing “trademark” at the end of the intellectual property. One must note that the trademark symbol only communicates the copyright on the logo, not the word “trademark.”
Closure
The trademark symbol is the leading form of safeguards for a business’s intellectual property. To summarize, the company’s intellectual property can be a creative and personally created logo, sign, expression, image, graphic, animation, sound, multimedia, audio, and 3D logo.
“Protect your innovative notion with trademark registration symbols!”
