The trademark is a sign used to distinguish goods or services, so it is very important to register it to be able to uniquely identify your business and communicate to your customers who you are and what you offer, as well as to provide greater reliability.

What is a trademark?

According to the Italian Industrial Property Code, a trademark may be any graphically representable sign, such as words, drawings, letters, numbers, sound and so on, as long as they are able to distinguish the goods or services of the company from those of other companies.                       
The trademark can be:

1. Individual: it refers to a single person or good or service;
2. Collective: it guarantees the origin, the nature or the quality of the goods or services, owned by an association of traders, producers, manufacturers, etc.

Furthermore, according to its elements, the trademark can be:

1. Name trademark: it consists only of words;
2. Figurative trademark: it consists of figures;
3. Mixed trademark: it consists of both words and figures.

Requirements

Under Italian Law, the trademark can be registered only if provided with:

1. Novelty: the trademark shall be different from other distinctive signs (e.g. trademarks, trade names etc.);
2. Distinctiveness: the trademark shall be able to distinguish goods or services from others (e.g. “car” cannot be used as a trademark for car manufacturers); 
3. Lawfulness: words, figures or sign contrary to law, public order, morality cannot be registered as trademarks, which can neither be misleading the consumers.

Certain signs cannot be registered as trademarks by law, such as signs of the shape of the same nature of the product or signs that have become common use in language or trade uses.

Why registering a trademark

Registering a trademark not only gives identity and value to goods or services, but it also confers other advantages.  
First of all, registering a trademark prevents its use by others who may copy your distinctive sign, thus giving greater value to your brand. In fact, trademarks are protected by intellectual property rights, which allow the owner to defend himself by legal means.     
In addition, the registered trademark takes on value over time and therefore allows the possibility of being traded, in addition to the possibility of carrying out commercial operations such as franchising.

The registration

Before proceeding with registration, it is generally always advisable to carry out a clearance check, to verify whether there are already equal or similar trademarks already registered.
Then, it is necessary to identify the relevant class of the goods or services covered by the trademark. This is essential because the protection is valid only for the sectors indicated in the registration. Italy uses the International classification system of trademarks of Nice.  
Once the request of registration is submitted at the Chamber of Commerce, the registration process takes some time due to the examination of admissibility.      
The registration does not require the physical presence of the applicant, who may appoint a representative by a power of attorney.   
Once registered, the trademark is protected for 10 years with retroactive effects: the term starts at the deposit. The trademark registration can be renewed without any limit.

Registration in Italy confers protection on all over the territory and is a prerequisite for the international registration of the trademark.       
 It is also possible to proceed with the registration of the trademark at the European level, which confers protection on all the territories of the Member States.

Therefore, registering your trademark in all countries where your goods or services are exported is essential for your protection. In fact, it is not uncommon for a trademark to be registered previously by another person in order to make some unfair profit.          
A registered trademark can also be licensed, thus providing your company with an additional source of income. Remember that a registered trademark can also form the basis of a franchise agreement.

VGS Lawyers can assist you with the registration of your trademark through all the process, tailoring the best solution to your needs.