2017-01-18
Being brand identifiers, trademarks are crucial to businesses. They provide exclusive rights to the owner, preventing usage of the brand name, logo or symbol by anyone else in the same field. Today, in the era of globalization and severe competition, it is essential to obtain trademark protection in every country in which you intend to market and sell your goods and services. Canada is an important market to look at for your brand protection strategy, especially for businesses seeking a break into North America and profit from Canada’s trade relations with the USA. Here are a few reasons why you should trademark your business in Canada.
1.International Trade Relations
Having most recently completed negotiations for the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement with Europe and the Trans-Pacific Partnership with 11 Pacific Rim countries, Canada continues to play a major role in international trade relations. Its strong ties with the USA are evident in it being among the USA’s largest supplier of goods. Canadian consumers are often aware of international brands due to exposure to advertisements from the USA, making Canada an important market for brand protection.
2.Value for your Money
Business owners seeking trademark registration in Canada can file a single application for a single flat fee, regardless of the number of classes of goods and services covered in the application. There might be amendments in future, under which the Trademarks Office is expected to charge additional fees on a per class basis. Therefore, also with recent depreciation of Canadian dollar, there has never been a better time for foreign brand owners to get their trademark registered in Canada.
3.Future Amendments
Amendments to the Canadian Trademarks Act may make it easier to obtain a trademark. At present, one of the amendments allows applicants to register a trademark without using it anywhere in the world. As a result, any other person without an intention of using the mark may register it and sell to the mark’s rightful owner. To avoid this in the future, you should get your trademark registered in Canada now!
Another amendment might expand protection to the array of non-traditional marks. It will begin to accept non-traditional marks like colors (without delineated contours), holograms, moving images, scents, tastes, and textures that are distinctive to the owner at the time of filing. This may be especially beneficial to apparel, film and food and beverage industries. Currently, the applicant is not required to prove distinctiveness at the time of filing for the acceptance of non-traditional marks. This may be a good time to get your trademark registered in Canada.
4.Protection against Competition
A trademark provides the owner exclusive rights to the mark in Canada in connection with the registered goods and services. Many non-Canadian brand owners use their trademarks without registering them, which can be problematic for those seeking to enforce their trademark rights against others. Without registration, you have a limited ability to prevent others from using a confusingly similar mark. Relying on common law can be costly as well as unpredictable. Moreover, with the Combating Counterfeit Products Act recently come into force, Canada has toughened its stance against counterfeit goods and pirated copies. A trademark may be recorded with the Canada Border Service Agency which will provide protection against infringement in the form of pirated and counterfeit goods.
5.Get a .ca Domain Name without Physical Presence in Canada
The Canadian Internet Registration Authority has Canadian presence requirements which must be met to register a .ca domain name. But a foreign trader that does not qualify the requirement is permitted to apply and subsequently own a .ca domain name if they own a Canadian trademark registration. In order to benefit from this, the .ca domain name applied for must consist of or include the exact word component of the registered trademark.
In a competitive business world, a trademark is an excellent solution for brand protection. A registered Canadian Trademark Agent can assist in evaluating your specific situation and preparing a trademark application for registration in Canada.
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