Protecting Your Brand With Copyright
Entrepreneurs and business owners put a lot of thought and time into their brand designs. From creative logos to interesting backstories, your brand is not just an icon, but a true representation of your business. In some instances, the design logo of a business can take on a life of its own.
Take for example the Black Dog Tavern in Martha’s Vineyard or the use of periodic table elements to make words from the tv series title “Breaking Bad.” These companies created iconic logos that didn’t just represent the business, but had great appeal to their local markets. Their logos are sold on shirts, bags and other apparel. Customers enjoyed their products and services, but also found their logo attractive and appealing enough to bring home.
When your logo takes on a life of its own, third parties will seek to copy it for their own purposes. The Internet is full of businesses that will print on demand - just send them a design, and have it printed on clothing, shopping bags, dish towels or wine glasses. These vendors can quickly and easily reproduce your design and offer it for sale to anyone, and with no attribution or association with your brand.
So how can you protect your designs from abuse by unauthorized parties and make sure it contributes to YOUR business growth?
Registering the copyright for unique designs will allow you to shut down any unauthorized use on products sold online, even without a trademark registration. It’s important to note here that in order to qualify for copyright protection, your logo must be a distinctive design. That means that it’s more than just words in a stylized font. For example, perhaps you are a yoga studio and your logo incorporates a distinctive flower or intricate pattern. That design is more likely to be protected under copyright law.
Copyright law protects any original work fixed in a tangible medium. An original drawing, piece of music, or written material has copyright protection immediately upon creation. Registration is not necessary to claim copyright; however, registration is required to bring a lawsuit for infringement. It’s also required to effectively shut down third party use of your works on sites like Etsy or Instagram. If you want enforceable protection for your design, copyright registration is often the right path.
We have a client who creates unique designs for printing on clothing. A third party on Etsy was selling shirts featuring the design, and also selling the electronic file for the design itself, without her permission. With a copyright registration, we were able to shut down the infringing items for sale without the time and costs to bring a lawsuit in court.
If you are concerned about third party use of a design associated with your business, contact an experienced trademark and copyright attorney to discuss the most effective way to protect your intellectual property.
We have more than 20 years of experience in intellectual property law and enforcement of trademark and copyright rights. Contact us today for a complimentary consultation.