Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/138003
lar products. (Many are surprised to learn that federal registration is not required to obtain trademark rights, but you can obtain commonlaw trademark rights simply by selling products displaying the mark.) You can use a name that others are using on different products or services, so long as consumers won't be confused into believing that the same source is providing your wine and their products or services. To r e d u c e a t t o r n e y 's f e e s , you can conduct initial searches for your desired marks on 1) the USPTO's database of registered trademarks (www.uspto.gov/trademarks); 2) the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau's COLA database (www.ttbonline.gov/colasonline/publicsearchcolasbasic.do); and 3) an Internet search engine, like Google. If your initial searches reveal no conflicting users, the recommended next step is to ask your attorney to obtain and analyze a comprehensive search report from a trademark search firm, which includes searches for look-alike or sound-alike names and for unregistered, common-law marks. Assuming your desired name has no trademark conflicts, you must next decide whether to seek federal registration of your mark. Discuss the reasons for pursuing federal registration versus common-law rights with your attorney, but one important benefit of federal registration is that it gives you the exclusive right to use the mark nationwide, even if you are currently using the mark in only a discrete geographic area. An exception to this nationwide right is that anyone using the mark before you has "priority," and you cannot stop them from using the mark in the geographic region in which they were already using the mark when you obtained registration. Sometimes a winery uses a brand name for several years without registering or policing it. While the temptation is to maintain the status quo, we strongly recommend that you discuss with your attorney whether you should seek to register such a mark. You don't want to learn of a competing use of your name by another winery years after it starts. We have had clients approach us after a potential buyer of a winery has discovered a competing use through due diligence and raised that use as a bargaining chip during the sale negotiations. For the winery to resolve those trademark issues under the pressure of a potential sale transaction is often difficult and costly. No deadline exists for applying for federal registration, but the longer you wait to apply, the greater the risk that others might object. Part of the registration process is that, before registering a mark, the USPTO publishes it in the Official Gazette, and Liquid Nitrogen Dosing Systems: Key Benefits: Flushes oxygen out of bottle head space Keeps the fruit in every pour Best "locks in" FSO2 levels 800.371.3303 www.chartdosers.com Dosing The World One Drop At A Time 104 VChartDosers& WINERY MANAGEMENT 1 July - Aug 2013 I N EYARD HalfPg Wine_2013_VWM.indd | 5/15/13v w m m e d i a . c o m w w w. 1:33 PM