Rights of a Trademark Owner

Owning a registered trademark means that the trademark is registered throughout the United States.

If a restaurant in Dallas, Texas is called "Joe's Barbeque," but the name is not registered, the rights of the restaurant owner are limited. The restuarant owner might only be able stop other restaurants in Dallas to be named "Joe's Barbeque." If a restaurant opened in New York City called itself "Joe's Barbeque," the owner of the Dallas restaurant may not be able to stop the New York restaurant from using the name.

Common-law trademarks like "Joe's Barbeque" are limited in their scope by industry and by geographic area! In order to obtain all the rights of a registered trademark, the mark must be registered.

Registration allows the industry and the goods or services branded by the mark to be defined by the trademark owner. Registration of a mark used in interstate commerce allows its geographic area to be in the United States, not just a specific location.

Can I lose these rights??

 
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