What cannot be trademarked in India?

 

Trademarks are generally used to differentiate your products and services from others. In this cut-throat competition, it is important to carve out a niche for the items you deal in and hence, trademarks carry a huge value as far as the day-to-day business activities are concerned.

According to the NASSCOM Start-Up Ecosystem Report, India is the third largest country for startups base. In the strife to survive within such intense competition, it is important to take help from trademarking. The concept of trademark registration in Ahmedabad is not new and in the ancient times, the craftsmen too used to put their carved signature on the items they made. With globalization, the rules and regulations of trademarks have more formalised.

When the Trademarks Act was first laid in 1940, it was inept to cater to the needs and requirements of the market. Later, the Trade and Merchandise Marks Act, 1958 was finalised which was then succeeded by the Trade Marks Act, 1999. The last Act was quite a comprehensive one and it helped the traders and merchants to get the right trademarks for their goods and services.

Getting a trademark precede certain rules. Here is the list of things that cannot be considered as a trademark:

Names/Surnames

The names or surnames cannot be considered as a trademark unless they are of some distinctive nature. Moreover, if the names and surnames are used dishonestly, they can never be accepted as trademarks.

Numbers

Unless the numbers have some specific purpose or they carry certain distinction, they cannot be called trademarks. In some specific cases, the courts have clearly stated that the numbers do not have any particular nature and hence, they cannot be given the status of a trademark.

Color

The Trade Mark Act has never refused to use colors in the trademarks but on the other hand, the Indian courts were never inclined towards adding hues to the trademarks.

Geographical Location

The geographical locations cannot be used as trademarks. The name of any hills station or any other place cannot be used as a trademark for a company.

Sound

The melodic notes are given the status of a trademark but voices like pooch woofing cannot be termed as a trademark.

Smell

It is very difficult to differentiate between any two smells. Moreover, the smell cannot go through the registration procedures of the trademark and hence, no smell can be considered as trademarks in India.