Choosing which business entity is right for your business is an important one, and many new businesses with more than one owner consider whether to operate as a partnership or a limited liability company (aka an LLC).
Archives for August 2014
Do I Need Trademark my Business or Product Name?
Once you start a company and file your company’s name with your state’s Secretary of State office, that company name is yours, and you can use it wherever you like across the globe. This is different from filing a trademark. A business name registration does not grant you trademark rights. It merely means that a particular state allows you do to business under that name. But, and this can be a little confusing, a business name can also be a trademark. It all depends on how you use it. If you use your business name to identify the source of your goods and services and distinguish them from the goods of another, that’s trademark use. To enjoy the nationwide rights offered by a federal trademark registration, however, you must file an application and receive a registration from the USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office).