® vs. ™: Which Trademark Symbol Should I Use And When?

Your business has successfully registered trademarks in your home country. Congratulations! That is an excellent step towards making sure that your company can gain a strong position in your industry. You might have some stiff competition, but you also have a brand that consumers will associate with your product or service.

Handling an increasing number of sales is an excellent problem to have, but it could pose some interesting issues for firms that are trying to manage their trademark rights, especially when those sales are based in other countries. Trademark law varies from nation to nation, and staying on the right side of the rules takes some research. Even how you mark your trademarks on product packaging can get you into trouble with foreign regulators if you are not careful.

Markings of a trademark status

First, many countries recognize two different types of markings that denote trademark status: ® and ". The "®" indicates that a trademark has been registered with a country's trademark office, and the """ means that the user is claiming rights to the brand without registering the mark. A "®" mark provides stronger trademark rights to businesses than a """ mark does. Nevertheless, how these markings are used in different countries means that companies cannot take a "one size fits all" approach to packaging and labeling. In the United States, trademark owners are compelled to use ® designation on their product packaging or else they might miss out on some of the benefits of trademark ownership, such as claims to profit recovery or damages in an infringement case. However, in France, there is no similar requirement to include the ® designation on packaging and labels. In fact, throughout most of Europe, the use of the ® designation in association with a trademark that is not registered within that country may run the risk of violating rules on misleading advertisements.

While most countries recognize the ® designation, the " is mostly a product of the English common-law system. This means that " is often seen on products in the United States and Australia but does not hold much weight in many countries around the world. Outside of common-law nations, consumers do not typically associate the " mark with any...