Avoiding trademark dilution through brand protection strategies

As this article highlights effective brand protection strategies related to trademark dilution, let us first define the terms “trademark” and “brand”. A trademark is any distinct word, phrase, symbol or picture, or combination thereof, that identifies and sets apart the goods of a specific business or organisation. It is commonly referred to as a mark and is also used at times to describe a service mark (which covers services instead of goods). While commonly considered synonymous with trademark, we consider a company’s brand to be comprised of not only the trademark, but also a product or collection of products, trade dress, advertising and promotional programmes, and its marketing strategy. The use of trademarks is wide ranging and utilised in numerous industries. In this article we highlight general brand protection strategies that have alignment with many of these industries.

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