Even with this being the case, it provides notice that you’re claiming common-law protections over the trademarked product.
Since it doesn’t go through the trademark registration process, there’s no guarantee that your claim of ownership will be legally protected. Unregistered Trademark: An unregistered trademark is signified by the letters TM, typically stylized as ™.The below is a summary of when to use the three primary types of trademark symbols: To utilize the federally registered “R” ® symbol, your trademark must be federally registered. The biggest distinction in the area of symbol usage is in the area of registration. Typically, companies just use the TM symbol regardless of whether the trademark is used in relation to goods or services. While the SM symbol denotes services, it is not necessary to use. When you first begin use of a trademark or service mark, you should use the corresponding ™ or ℠ symbols. Unfortunately, you can’t simply use symbols interchangeably in order to garner more rights. Trademarks can apply in a specific regional area or nationally – depending upon whether you have sought federal registration. This makes it more difficult for someone to later claim ignorance after committing trademark infringement. Each of the main symbols tells others that you are asserting trademark rights. Trademark symbols can signify many things, but one of their most important functions is to let others know your name or logo is protected. There are three main trademark symbols – ®, ™, and ℠ – that are often used in superscript form to identify trademarks. This page answers questions like what is a trademark symbol and how and when the different trademark symbols are used.