The types of trademark applications that can be filed are:
- Word Mark: This type of application is made with just the word that needs to be trademarked. No logo or slogan is provided with it. It focuses only and only on the word that carries the entire Goodwill of the product or business it is being used for. This type of application gives the highest form of security for the Trademark. It gives rights to its applicant to the extent of stopping anybody else from using the mark with or without any other type of logo or design for it.
- Logo Mark: When the application is accompanied with a Logo, it becomes a Logo Mark. This mark associates the brand name with the Logo and gives protection only in each other’s association. What this means is, the applicant can only stop anybody else from using the Brand name, if that other person is using the brand name with the logo that is attached with this application. If the other person is using it with any other logo, the applicant won’t be able to take any action against them. Nonetheless, this type of application gets registered faster than a word mark application as it has limited rights of protection.
- Sound Mark: Applicants can protect a sound mark to be used as their Trademark via this type of application. Special tunes or sound mnemonics that are used in audio and video advertisements by companies for their products and services can be secured here. These sounds and tunes create a long lasting impression in the listeners and thus associate a form of goodwill for the company’s product and service. This helps them secure their goodwill that is created by these sounds and tunes.
- Trade Dress Mark: The design and content that you see on the packages of products available in the market are secured via this type of application. The package design creates a distinctive identity for the product in the eyes of the customers. Securing this helps the product owners protect the association that the design and packaging has created with its customers.
- Color Mark:Colors have a stronger impact in the memory of humans than text. Hence products and services that us a particular color in their logo or designs, have their customers associate them with the color that they use. The right to use this color for themselves only can be secured by this type of trademark application.