To begin with, maintaining the integrity of a brand is a more and more difficult task ina globalized world where most products and services are easily accessible online. Potential infringements are a challenge equally for small entities as for big entities. Additional new risks for maintaining a brand’s integrity arise in the new era of Artificial Intelligence as AI-generated creativity may bear striking similarities to existing brands.
The brand selection along with the trademark filings process is a key element of the brand strategy. This includes the selection of the classes and list of products and services of interest, countries of interest in the short, medium and long term etc. However, the trademark watch is as important.
Some trademark Offices may issue refusals of new registrations based on likelihood of confusion of prior marks such as the USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office), and other Offices as for example EUIPO (European Union Intellectual Property Office) send informative surveillance letters to owners of prior rights in case a highly similar trademark is detected. However, it is important to note that many Trademark Offices do not examine prior trademarks in the registration process nor send alerts to owners. Therefore, in all of these cases, trademark surveillance, also referred to as trademark watch, is essential.
But what exactly can be understood as trademark watch? There are different types of watch services.
Generally speaking, the basic form of trademark watch can be defined as systematic monitoring for similar trademarks in jurisdictions and in classes of interest for wordmarks or figurative trademarks. This usually includes two main types of monitoring which are identical trademark watch and similar trademark watch. However, the basic form can be complemented and adapted with such as surveillance of social media, google searches, domain monitoring services, etc. Each type can be offered with or without legal opinions, depending on the needs of the brand owner.
The most obvious benefit of watch services is the early identification of any infringement which in the best-case scenario can prevent time consuming and expensive legal disputes.
However, it is important to bear in mind, that the setup of an in-house surveillance system and/or the outsourcing of this task by contracting professional monitoring services, such as those provided by IP attorneys, is associated with additional, but essential costs for businesses. But this can be offset by savings in the future, given that trademark monitoring is an effective tool for avoiding legal disputes, thus at the end of the day the surveillance expense could save significant amounts of money to the brand owner.
In conclusion, while selecting the right trademark and filing and doing so correctly is a critical step in brand protection, it is just one part of the equation. Trademark monitoring is essential in the digital landscape to ensure that a brand’s integrity is maintained. The benefits outweigh the potential risks and costs of not monitoring trademarks.