Tell me more ×
Answers OnStartups is a question and answer site for entrepreneurs looking to start or run a new business. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 0 down vote favorite

Let's say we have a company called ParentCompany (www.parentcompany.com)

That company has 3 products called P1, P2 and P3 (www.p1.com, www.p2.com, and www.p3.com)

The company and each of its products have their own logos.

The company is software based and is aspiring to do business in more than one country.

What is the best way to register/copyright/trademark this company and it's products & logos?

Is it fine if we simply add "© 2011, Parent Company" in the footer of the company and the products websites.

Thanks in advance!

share|improve this question

1 Answer

up vote 1 down vote accepted

Trademark

You want to establish trademark rights to your company and product names. To do this in the U.S., you simply use the names in commerce. Other countries require registrations. In the U.S., you can also add a TM superscript to the end of your trademark to give others notice of your trademark rights. In the U.S. and other countries you can also apply for a trademark registration, but you have to do this in each country separately. Only after you get a trademark registration can you use the (R) symbol after the mark. Here are some reasons to register a trademark in the US.

Copyright

Unless you are publishing books, music, or the like, most people don't bother to get copyright registrations. What is it that you want to copyright? The text of the web page, your source code, something else? You should add "© 2011, Parent Company" to each thing that you want to claim copyright for. Note that you can't copyright a trademark.

share|improve this answer
thanks Kekito. Is it necessary to register trademarks right now? We have not launched any products as yet. Can you please tell an approximate cost and time to do the same? – neology Jul 26 '11 at 5:45
From a US perspective, no need to register now or ever. You can always register later if you choose to. I would budget a few thousand and 6-12 months to get a trademark depending how distinct it is. Please upvote the answer if you find it helpful. – user6603 Jul 26 '11 at 13:20

Your Answer

 
discard

By posting your answer, you agree to the privacy policy and terms of service.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.