Why Amazon Sellers Should Care About Amazon Brand Registry
In order to ensure a smoother application process for Amazon Brand Registry, the most important thing to do is to derisk your trademark application with the USPTO. Amazon sellers need to understand the importance of choosing a brand name for Amazon seller account that, when filed as a trademark application, will present the lowest risk of rejection by the Trademark Office.
Need a registered trademark to maximize full benefits of Amazon Brand Registry? Email vlin@icaplaw.com or call (949) 223-9623 to see how we can help you register your trademark to take full advantage of Brand Registry benefits.
Why Amazon Brand Registry Matters to Patent Owners
Amazon sellers who own patents will want to take full advantage offered by Amazon Brand Registry for enforcing utility patents and handling design patents. Essentially, the Brand Registry is a gateway for Amazon sellers to enforce their IP rights more quickly and effectively.
So if you care about blocking competitors from selling products that infringe your patent rights, you need to enroll in Amazon Brand Registry as quickly as possible. And to enroll in Brand Registry as fast as you can, you need to avoid delays and rejections in your USPTO trademark applicaton.
How To Get Your Trademark Registered With Fewer Rejections
Many things can go wrong with a USPTO trademark application, but two rejections make the top of the list. Rejections based on likelihood of confusion or merely descriptive mark are the most common types of trademark rejections. How can you avoid these pitfalls?
Avoid do-it-yourself trademark filings. A DIY trademark filing might save you a few bucks initially, but you may end up wasting a huge amount of time to find out trademark application is delayed or, even worse, defective. Are you willing to wait 8-10 months to find out that your trademark application has problems that could have been corrected or avoided upfront?
Will a rejected USPTO trademark application delay or even sacrifice patent rights that you could be enforcing on Amazon? Will copycat listings get away with selling knockoff products because you can’t take full advantage of the brand registry due to a rejected trademark application?
Start By Avoiding Generic or Highly Descriptive Names
To reduce the risk of a merely descriptive refusal, choose a name that is not generic or highly descriptive of your products. The more distinctive your trademark, the better. An experienced trademark attorney can provide guidance on the risk of merely descriptive rejections.
Search Before You Create A Name for Amazon Brand Registry (if possible)
A knockout search of live USPTO trademark filings will shed light on the risk of a confusion rejection. Here’s the chicken-and-egg dilemma for Amazon sellers. Do you incorporate first with a company name that you like? Or, do you search trademark registrations before adopting a brand name?
If possible, search first before coming up with a brand name for your company. Then incorporate. That way, you lessen the potential costs of changing to a new brand name and renaming or repackaging your existing inventory.
What if you have already incorporated under a name that is difficult to trademark?
If you have already incorporated under a brand name, you will want to file your USPTO trademark application as soon as possible to beat others who might apply for a similar mark. It’s not ideal, but late is better than much later.
If your trademark application does get rejected, consult an experienced trademark attorney to develop a cost-effective strategy to overcome those rejections. Be prepared to invest in a smart legal strategy to either navigate around registered trademarks or kill those blocking registrations.
Need to Get on Amazon Brand Registry Quickly?
Call US patent attorney Vic Lin at (949) 223-9623 or email vlin@icaplaw.com to see how we can get you enrolled in Amazon Brand Registry with minimal obstacles and delay.
