TRADEMARKS TRADEMARKS Tom Blackett Deputy Chairman Interbrand Group Ltd ~ MACMILLAN Interbrand Business © Tom Blackett 1998 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1s t edition 1998 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London WIP 9HE. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. The author has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. First published 1998 by MACMILLAN PRESS LTD Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS and London Companies and representatives throughout the world ISBN 978-1-349-14721-2 ISBN 978-1-349-14719-9 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-14719-9 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 321 07 06 05 04 03 02 01 00 99 98 Copy-edited and typeset by Povey-Edmondson Tavistock and Rochdale, England To Tom and Phyi 'If this business were to be split up, I would be glad to take the brands, trademarks and goodwill and you could have all the cash and bricks and mortar - and I would fare better than you.' John Stuart Former Chairman of Quaker I Contents List of Tables and Figures x List of Images XI Acknowledgements XIII Introduction XIV 1 What is a Trademark? 1 A Definition 1 Trademarks, Patents, Designs and Copyrights 2 How the Trademark Fits into the Overall Product 'Mix' 3 History of Trademarks 5 Origins of Trademark Law 6 Trademarks, Brand Names, Service Marks 7 How the Role of the Trademark Varies by Industrial Sector 8 Word Marks, Initials, Service Marks, and so on 10 2 How to Create Trademarks 13 The Role of the Trademark 13 The Importance of Brand Names 14 Different Types of Brand Name 15 The Psychology of Names 17 National/International Aspects 19 Criteria for a Strong Brand Name 21 Developing a Brand Name Strategy 21 Developing Creative Themes 22 Creative Techniques 23 Selecting a Shortlist 26 Language Checks 27 Trademark Searching 28 Consumer Testing 30 Developing Brand Names for New Drugs 33 The Role of the Advertising Agency 37 The Role of the Design Consultancy 38 VII Vlll Contents 3 How to Protect Trademarks 40 What can be Registered? 40 Strong versus Weak Marks 41 Protection 42 Why Register? 44 Registration Practices 45 Conducting a Trademark Availability Search 47 US Patents and Trade Marks Office (USPTO) 49 Filing an Application 51 Costs and Further Bureaucratic Procedures 52 The Trademark Attorney 54 Importance of Usage 54 International Classification System 55 Developments in the EU - the Community Trademark 55 The Madrid Arrangement and the Madrid Protocol 56 Unregistered Trademarks 58 Corporate Names 58 4 Trademark Management 59 Main Principles of Trademark Management 59 Correct Usage is Essential 60 Five Golden Rules 60 Policing Trademarks 63 Litigation 64 Infringement 65 'Unfair Competition' and 'Passing Off' 67 Remedies 68 The Trademarks Manual 69 Counterfeiting 70 'Grey' Goods and 'Parallel Trading' 71 Comparative Advertising 72 5 Managing and Exploiting Brands 74 Maintaining Brand Equities 74 The Role of Design 75 Relationship with Advertising Agencies and Other Advisers 76 Brand Extension 77 The Internationalisation of Trademarks 79 Trademark Licensing 84 Internal Trademark Licensing 85 Franchising 86 Monitoring 'Brand Value' 88 Brands on the Balance Sheet 89 How to Value a Brand 91 Contents IX 6 Case History: The 'Transax' Story 95 Background 95 Cheque Point/Chequepoint 96 Passing Off 96 The Hearing 97 Developing a New Name 98 Developing the Identity 99 Maintaining the 'Transax' Name 100 Conclusions 100 7 The Future of Trademarks and Branding 102 Future Trends 102 Brand Evaluation 103 Brand Management 103 Brand Extension versus New Brand Development 105 Internationalization 106 Private Label Brands 106 The 'Lookalike' Phenomenon 107 The Role of the Corporate Brand 108 Branding Industrial Products 108 Branding Pharmaceutical Products 109 Ten Rules of Good Brand Management 110 Appendix I Trademark Classification 112 Appendix II Trademark Application Form 119 Bibliography 124 Index 125 I List of Tables and Figures • Tables 2.1 The world's most valuable brands are international 20 3.1 The availability of protection 44 3.2 Examination systems 47 3.3 How long does it take to register? 53 5.1 The top 20 European brands, 1996 82 5.2 The top fives, 1994 83 5.3 The growth of intangible value 90 7.1 The world's best-managed brands in 1996 105 • Figures 1.1 The role of brands 9 2.1 The brand name spectrum 16 2.2 The name development process 32 x