In todays business world trademarks occupy a very prominent role. It is the only means of differentiating your product from your competitors product. Trademarks earn goodwill based on the quality of the product manufactured under it. Thus trademark could become your most valuable asset as it attracts customers to you due to the goodwill earned by the trademark.

For the registration of trademark application has to be made before the Registrar of Trade Marks. Initially the application is examined by the Registrar and if he finds it satisfactory it is advertised in the Trade Marks Journal. After advertisement, any person who has an objection to such application can file an objection within four months based on which hearings are fixed. In the event of the appeal being decided in our favor, the registration is granted. If no such opposition is filed following the advertisement then also the registration is granted.

Old units which have been running since a long time should get their trademark or brand name registered because when a manufacturer manufactures certain goods under a brand name, it earns goodwill over a period of time which should be registered to prevent someone else from taking advantage of the same.

If someone else gets a trademark registered which is identical or similar to yours and starts a business using the same trademark, you cannot stop him from doing so because he has got a legal right to use the trademark due to the registration. Therefore it would be in your own interest to get your trademark or brand name registered before someone else does.

The Trade Marks (Amendment) Act 2010 and the Trade Marks (Amendment) Rules, 2013 came in to force with effect from July 08, 2013.

This marks the official entry of India to the International Filing System under the Madrid Protocol. Thus Indian applicants can now file a single application for registration of trademark in all or any of the member countries of the Madrid Protocol thereby simplifying the process to avail protection in different countries.

Technically, the amendments are directed to bring the Indian Trademarks Law in line with the Madrid system.

Accepting these changes brings India a lot closer to the standards followed at an International level. The new rules are also a step forward in avoiding conflicts arising due to different Trademark laws in different countries especially in the case of applicants who maintain a global presence.

Going through the possibilities mentioned above it would be advisable to get your trademark or brand name registered before someone else does. It would be in the interest of your own business to do so.

The same applies to copyrights registration as well. Copyrights can be registered for literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works and producers of cinematograph films and sound recordings broadly. The ambit of copyrights is quite huge and there are numerous works which can be copyrighted.

Copyright registration safeguards the interest of an author or creator in any of his creations and gives a boost to his creativity. Often copyright registration is ignored or mis-conceived as applicable only to books, films and songs. In reality it covers a very large and diverse number of works including photographs, websites, drawings, architectural plans, characters, trademarks, designs etc. Most of the creators do not have any idea that their creation is subject matter of Copyrights registration and the monetary benefits that can be availed after the Copyrights registration. We urge the registration of copyrights which enables the creator to start earning royalty from such creativity and encourages him to create more.

The registration of Designs of products is becoming a very important aspect of manufacturers of various goods considering the fact the general public tends to buy goods which are more attractively shaped. A Design refers to the features of shape, configuration, pattern, ornamentation or composition of lines or colors applied to any article.