Trademarks Trademarks are brand names or symbols used in any commerce that identifies goods of a particular manufacturer or the provider of services. A trademark may take any form such as: a word(s), an emblem, symbol, slogan or other device; as long as it serves to identify the goods of a particular source. The underlying goal of trademark law is to identify the source of goods or the provider of services in order to prevent customers and potential customers from being confused. Trademark law also protects the goodwill and reputation of the trademark owner. The owner of the trademark may bring a lawsuit to stop others from using a similar trademark on similar goods. In addition, the owner of a federally registered trademark may obtain the assistance of U.S. Customs inspectors to prevent misbranded or counterfeit goods from being imported into this country.
A trademark registration may be applied for by filing a properly executed application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The trademark registration is effective for 10 years and it may be renewed for a successive 10 years. Generally, the total time for an application to be processed may be anywhere from almost a year to several years, depending on the basis for filing, and the legal issues which may arise in the examination of the application. The PTO currently charges a fee of $325 for trademark registration and $400 for trademark renewal. You may access the trademark forms, plus information about applying for a trademark, by clicking on Basic Facts About Trademarks under the Guidance and Manuals heading under Trademark Information at the Website: www.uspto.gov. The forms may be downloaded, filled out and mailed in. You may also use TEAS - the Trademark Electronic Application System. TEAS allows you to fill out an application form and check it for completeness over the Internet. Using e-TEAS you can then submit the form directly to the USPTO over the internet, making an official filing on-line. Alternatively, using PrinTeas, you can print out the completed application for mailing to the USPTO. For e-TEAS, you must pay by credit card OR through an existing USPTO deposit account. For PrinTEAS, you must pay by check, money order, or through an existing USPTO deposit account. Both e-TEAS and PrinTEAS are available at teas.uspto.gov/indexTLT.html. For additional information regarding trademarks, you may contact General Information Services Division and request to be transferred to the Trademark Assistance Center (TAC) 1-800-786-9199 or (703) 308-9000.
Trademark applications for South Dakota can also be registered with the Office of the Secretary of State if the mark is to be used only in South Dakota. You must submit three samples of your trademark, along with a fee of $50; the trademark is then good for four years. If your mark is used in other states it must be registered with the Assistant Commissioner of Trademarks.
Contact:
SD Secretary of State Trademark Administrator
500 E. Capitol, Suite 204
Pierre, SD 57501
(605) 773-3539 www.sdsos.gov/trademarks
US Commissioner of Trademarks and Patents
PO Box 1450
Alexandria, VA 22313-1450
(703) 308-4357 or 1-800-786-9199 www.uspto.gov/main/trademarks.htm
Patents There are three kinds of patents in the US. First are utility patents that cover mechanical, electrical, chemical, and business processes, machines, articles of manufacturing, compositions of matter, and/or any new useful improvements. Second are design patents that cover only ornamental designs applied to useful articles. Third are plant patents that cover new plants that are sexually prorogated. The term of both utility patents and plant patents expires at the end of 20 years from the date the application was filed. The term of a design patent is 14 years from the date it’s issued.
Patents are awarded to the first person to “invent” something. Therefore, the ability to prove your date of invention may be important if other inventors file patent applications before you do. Professional assistance from a patent attorney is strongly urged because patent procedures are detailed and technical. A patent search is performed to see if a patent currently exists on the same or nearly the same device, and if not, to make proper application with the Patent Office. Along with the written application there must be: 1. A description of the invention 2. A drawing of the invention 3. A specification which is a detailed description of the best mode of practicing the invention, concluding with one or more claims defining what the inventor considers to be the invention 4. A promise you are the original creator of your invention, and an application fee. The average cost for filing patents ranges as high as $5,000 to $10,000 and may take 12 to 18 months to obtain the actual patent.
Note: Only attorneys and agents registered with the U.S. Patent Office may represent inventors in related matters. The office has geographical and alphabetical listings of the more than 11,000 registered agents. Only these agents may perform patent searches in the patent office. Inventors or their attorneys can make arrangements with one of those agents. U.S. patents are issued by the Assistant Commissioner of Patents, Washington, DC 20231. Additional information is provided in the publications, General Information Concerning Patents, and other publications distributed through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Inventors may apply for one of two types of patent applications: (1) A non-provisional application, which begins the examination process and may lead to a patent and (2) A provisional application, which establishes a filing date but does not begin the examination process. Both types of patent applications can be filed either electronically or in writing to the Commissioner for Patents. To file electronically by using the Electronic Filing System (EFS) you go to www.uspto.gov and click on Patents, then click on How to Apply for a Patent under Patenting, then click on File a patent electronically. You can also request that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) send informational materials providing a broad overview of the process of obtaining a United States patent, including general requirements and a listing of the depository libraries. For a listing of the information available, visit the USPTO Web site by going to www.uspto.gov and clicking on Patents, then click on Contact Us, then click on FAQs, then click on 1. How Do I Apply for a Patent, and then click on to the link at the bottom of the paragraph.
Contact:
US Commissioner of Patents & Trademarks
PO Box 1450
Alexandria, VA 22313-1450
(703) 308-4357 or 1-800-786-9199 www.uspto.gov/main/patents.htm
Copyrights
A copyright protects the expression of an idea (not the idea itself), which is provided by the laws of the United States (title 17, U.S. Code) to the authors of “original works of authorship,” including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works. The copyright is effective for the author’s life plus 70 years. Copyright of “work for hire” made by employees last for 95 years from the date of publication or 120 years from the date of creation, which ever is less. This protection is available to both published and unpublished works. The time the Copyright Office requires to process an application varies, depending on the amount of material the Office is receiving. If your submission is in order, you may generally expect to receive a certificate of registration within approximately 4 to 5 months of submission. Section 106 of the 1976 Copyright Act generally gives the owner of copyright the exclusive right to do and to authorize others to do the following:
To reproduce the work in copies or phonorecords.
To prepare derivative works based upon the work.
To distribute copies or phonorecords of the work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease or lending.
To perform the work publicly, in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and motion pictures and other audiovisual works.
To display the copyrighted work publicly, in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and pictorial, graphic, or sculptural works, including the individual images of a motion picture or other audiovisual work.
In the case of sound recordings, to perform the work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission.
Several categories of material are generally not eligible for federal copyright protection. These include among others:
Works that have not been fixed in a tangible form of expression (for example, choreographic works that have not been notated or recorded, or improvisational speeches or performances that have not been written or recorded).
Titles, names, short phrases, and slogans; familiar symbols or designs; mere variations of typographic ornamentation, lettering, or coloring; mere listings of ingredients or contents.
Ideas, procedures, methods, systems, processes, concepts, principles, discoveries, or devices, as distinguished from a description, explanation, or illustration.
Works consisting entirely of information that is common property and containing no original authorship (for example: standard calendars, height and weight charts, tape measures and rulers, and lists or tables taken from public documents or other common sources).
To register for a copyright, send the following three elements in the same envelope:
A properly completed application form.
A non refundable filing fee of $30 for each application.
A non-returnable deposit of the work being registered. The deposit requirements vary in particular situations. The general requirements follow.
If the work was first published in the United States on or after January 1, 1978, two complete copies or phonorecords of the best edition.
If the work was first published in the United States before January 1, 1978, two complete copies or phonorecords of the work as first published.
If the work was first published outside the United States, one complete copy or phonorecord of the work as first published.
If sending multiple works, all applications, deposits, and fees should be sent in the same package. If possible, applications should be attached to the appropriate deposit. Whenever possible, number each package (e. g., 1 of 3, 2 of 4) to facilitate processing.
Contact:
Library of Congress
Copyright Office
101 Independence Avenue S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20559-6000
(202) 707-5959 or (202) 707-3000 lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/
