Trademark

From the Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can change

A trademark (or trade mark) is a way for a business to help people to know the things the business makes. A trademark is a name, word, phrase, symbol, logo, design, or picture. It can only be used for the thing made by that business.

For example, Coca-Cola and Coke are trademark names for a certain drink made by a certain business No other business can use these names. Other businesses can make a drink that is similar, but they have to use a different name for their drink.

The Nike company makes sports shoes and clothes. The "swoosh" symbol that they use is a trademark, and no other company can use it.

Trademarks can also be names or symbols for brands: whole families of products. The "swoosh" symbol and the name Coke are trademarks that represent the Nike and Coke brands.

[change] Trademark and law

Trademarks are protected by law. The business tells the government of its country that it wants to use a certain trademark for the thing it makes, and then the government says that no one else can use that trademark. This is "registering" the trademark. If someone uses the trademark in a wrong way, they might have to pay a fine. In the United States, the governing law for trademarks is the Lanham Act.

When people write a word that is a trademark or show a picture or symbol that is a trademark, they should say that it is a trademark. They can write the word "Trademark", the abbreviation "TM", the symbol ™, or the letters "TM" inside a circle.

When people write or show a trademark that a business has registered with their government, people should say it is a "registered trademark" or use the "®" symbol or the abbreviation "Reg."

Businesses that do things for people instead of making things are service providers. They can get a service mark instead of a trademark for the things they do. When people write or show a service mark, they can use the service mark symbol: "℠".