YOUR GOOD NAME IS IMPORTANT TO US!

Now that you've come up with a great idea for a product or service, it's time to sell it. Whether you're selling it to prospective buyers or investors, you're going to have to call it something. Here, we can help!

A trademark is a word, name, symbol or product design which is adopted and used by a manufacturer or seller to identify her products. It may appear on a label, a package, a merchandising display or on the product itself.

A service mark is a word, name, symbol or design which is used by a person to identify the services which he provides.

Before you select a trademark or service mark, we can advise you if it is a strong one and let you know if someone else is already using a similar mark.

If you are planning to offer your products or services to customers in other states, we can reserve your mark, even if you're not yet using it, by applying to register it with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. A form for that purpose follows.

SO ARE YOUR GOOD WORKS
If you're the creative type; whether you've just completed The Great American Novel, produced a video or written a truly bodacious piece of computer software, you'll probably need protection. The more potential your work has to make you money, the more likely it is that someone is going to try to steal your stuff. What can you do to protect yourself? Register your copyright in your creation! The cost is minimal, all you need is a form and $20.00, which you send to the U.S. Copyright Office. And, while you don't have to register a copyright, or a trademark for that matter, a registered copyright or trademark is prima facie evidence of your ownership of and your exclusive right to use your work or mark. Also, you can't sue anyone for copyright infringement without it.

If you have any questions, call us at 312-201-0777, fax us at 312-201-0737 or write us at geb@bullwinkel.com.