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The registration of a company name or domain name is not the same as not the same thing as trademark registration. It is a common misconception that registering a company name in the business registry also automatically protects those business and trade names as a trademark. This is not true.
Company Name
The company name is the legal name that is recorded in the company/commercial register. It often ends with Limited, Ltd., Inc., GmbH, S.r.l, S.A., Pty., or another similar abbreviation that denotes the legal character of the business. It identifies your business in bylaws, contracts, and other administrative activities.
Trade Name
A trade name is the name that you use to identify your business when communicating with your clients. This may or may not be the same as or part of the company name. In some countries, you acquire certain exclusive rights in a trade/business name merely by using it in public (i.e., without any legal registration or formality).
For example, Procter & Gamble Co., commonly known as P&G, is an American multinational corporation and a major player in the consumer goods industry. The company uses the trade name P&G and owns many well-known trademarks, including TIDE®, GILLETTE®, and PAMPERS®, among others.
Industria de Diseño Textil, S.A. is a Spanish corporation and one of the world’s largest fashion groups. The company uses the trade name INDITEX and owns many trademarks like ZARA®, BERSHKA® and MASSIMO DUTTI®, among others.
Domain Name
Domain names are user-friendly Internet addresses used to find websites. For example, the domain name “kemberts.com” takes you to our KEMBERTS website at www.kemberts.com. A domain name, by itself, cannot confer any trademark rights on the domain name owner. Generally, domain names are available for registration on a first-come, first-served basis. However, there are certain exceptions to this rule, “Cybersquatting” (when a person registers a domain name containing a trademark without a legitimate purpose and merely to prevent the trademark owner from having it (or re-sell it to the trademark owner to make a profit).
