Establishing Copyright
Copyright protects art, music, books, films and videos among other things. Copyright establishes the right of the author to control the use of his creation. Copyright cannot protect functional items. Common uses of copyright in the apparel business are to protect logos and prints on fabric. Copyright protection is significantly expanded by registration. It is very important to register company logos, assuming the logos have some design, as opposed to only plain letters. A copyright application is cheap. Visit www.copyright.gov and use form VA to protect your logo.
As you begin to use your own logo or trademark you can establish a “Poor Man” copyright by mailing the item you wish to copy to yourself by Certified Mail. Once you receive the certified mail, keep it unopened and tape the postal receipt to it and file it away. If the envelope is opened the copyright becomes invalid. This will establish when you fist began to use the logo or trademark.
It will be important to make sure that you are not infringing on any other company’s copyright or trademark. A mark will be protected only if it is not confusingly similar or identical to a mark that is already in use. If another business has prior rights to a name, it is often wise to discover this before you invest any money in promoting your product. To protect your logo, it is best to have it federally registered as your trademark, which protects your mark in all states, plus all U.S. territories. It also allows you to file a suit in Federal court, and gives you a presumption in court that the mark is yours.
Once your registration is issued you can, and should use the ® seen next to almost every well-known label and brand name. Best of all, it allows you to safely invest time and money in the name and label, without worrying about losing it to another manufacturer in a costly legal battle.
