Research

The preceding description of the various Intellectual Property rights shows that it is very important to carry out an examination before filing an application to register a mark. Even the examinations not required by law can save you disappointment and unnecessary costs.

CTC-ITP offers you a wide range of (preliminary) examinations. On the basis of these examinations, we can determine under which right(s) your Intellectual Property could be registered and whether your products and/or services meet the conditions for registration. If you do not meet with certain conditions, we can advise you on which measures to take in order to be allowed to register.

Quick scans

Prior to choosing a definite name and undertaking a thorough examination, we can perform a quick scan for you in all the official registers and give you a first impression of the situation regarding this name or the brand element.

Classification

A mark is registered under one or more classes. You have to split your products and/or services into classes before an examination can take place or an application for registration can be filed. There are 45 classes. Each class represents a group of goods or services. A classification takes place on the basis of your product or service. On average, this comes down to 3 classes per product or service. CTC-ITP takes care of this classification for you.

Download - Classification in word format.

Trade name search

From a legal point of view, trade names offer less legal protection than marks, although it may be the case that your trade name is also your brand name. In any case, a strong trade name can also be a strong brand. Trade names can also be a drawback when filing for a mark. In order to find out whether any similar or identical trade names are already being used, we can carry out a search for you into the trade names that are listed in the trade registers. We can let you have the results of this search within a matter of days.

Trademark search

As part of this search we consult various databases in order to determine whether your trademark is identical to a previously registered trademark in the classes in which your trademark has been classified. In addition, we can carry out an extensive identical trademark search to find out whether there are any similar trademarks.

The results of these searches can be used to determine whether your trademark is still available and whether it is distinctive enough. Since there are already thousands of registered trademarks, it is vital for you to know all the possible risks attached to your trademark. On the basis of these searches, we will carry out an analysis and make a recommendation. You can decide on the basis of this recommendation whether you still wish to file an application for your trademark.

Availability search trademarks (identical search)

As part of this search we consult the trademark databases in the requested area in order to determine whether your trademark is identical to a previously registered trademark in the classes in which your trademark has been classified. The results of this research provides you with the information if your trademark is still available. In the first phase an identical screening helps you to delete the trademarks which are no longer available.

Similar search trademarks

With a similar search we consult the trademark databases in the requested area in order to determine whether there are any visual, phonetically and conceptual similarities to your trademark in the classes in which your trademark has been classified. The results of this search can be used to determine whether your trademark is still available and whether it is distinctive enough to other trademarks. Since there are already thousands of registered trademarks, it is vital for you to know all the possible risks attached to your trademark.

In use search of a trademark

We herewith investigate whether an existing trademark is still in use. The non use of a trademark with a right to have it in use might be a reason for having it deleted from the registers. This research is particularly useful if you want to register your mark or if you are faced with an opposition or in a conflict situation.

Slogan search

By means of a search in the register, it is possible to check whether your slogan makes any infringements on the rights of previously registered slogans, and your slogan is judged on originality.