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Help Trademarking A Band Name

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Electronik

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California

Hello and thanks in advance for helping a starving artist. I have some questions and I will use a fictitious band name "Elektronik Produce" as an example for my questions.

1. The first word is misspelled on purpose and the second word is rather generic. USPTO search yields no results for the combined word "Elektronik Produce", however Elektronik alone yields many results also including other words. "Electronic Produce" spelled correctly yields many results, but not the combined 2 words by itself or in exact order e.g. "Cool Electronic Produce" and "Produce Electronic". Will I be able to register the name?

2. Another person out there goes by the name "Elektronik Produce". We are a band that performs and also produces music. The other person, it appears, only produces music. Although we were first they appear to have a larger google search footprint with the top 2 search results by working with a somewhat known named artist. Albums released with the their name as producer credits appear to be mixtapes (available for free) and not online retail with major companies. Results for the other guy go as far back as 2014. We are most likely first to use the name having performed some songs in 2005 and establishing social media identity and content for streaming since 2006. Will this be a problem?

Here are MAYBE some good things we have going for us:
- Domain name www.elektronikproduce.com since 2010-2011
- One album with the band name "Elektronik Produce" registered with copyright.gov filed in 2011, however the songs were made in 2005. Current search results yield no other copyrights registered under the name Elektronik Produce.
- YouTube music video with our name on the video uploaded September of 2007
- Although we've been distributing music and providing services for years, we finally have songs for sale through major online retailers including iTunes this week.
- YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr and most known social media sites have been secured with custom url /elektronikproduce attached e.g. "www.youtube.com/elektronikproduce"

3. If I am able to register, at minimum what goods and classes should I cover? What would be acceptable specimens to submit for Section1(a) considering we do not have a physical cd to sell other than sharpied burned discs and online music content available for stream and download? To be clear, we have not made money yet. Would Section1(b) be a better plan? I would just like to get the ball rolling for peace of mind and with minimal chance of rejection. Most of what we do are under class 041 and 009 since we perform music, record mix & master music, distribute free music and recently starting to sell. At minimum I'd like to protect the band name.

I have about $700 to invest for trademarking. Anyways, I appreciate all the help. I know it will be hard to cover everything and there's probably all sorts of things going against me without having a paid lawyer to handle it all. Just looking at what I got ahead of me and possible solutions.
 


quincy

Senior Member
First, your best source of information will be the USPTO website (http://www.uspto.gov) and a trademark attorney local to you. Having a professional personally review the specific name you wish to use, and the facts of your current use of the name, is recommended.

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California

Hello and thanks in advance for helping a starving artist. I have some questions and I will use a fictitious band name "Elektronik Produce" as an example for my questions.1. The first word is misspelled on purpose and the second word is rather generic. USPTO search yields no results for the combined word "Elektronik Produce", however Elektronik alone yields many results also including other words. "Electronic Produce" spelled correctly yields many results, but not the combined 2 words by itself or in exact order e.g. "Cool Electronic Produce" and "Produce

Electronic". Will I be able to register the name?
This first question is one that cannot be answered with any degree of certainty. There are several factors to consider and only one factor is whether a similar or the same name has been federally registered. For example, also looked at by a trademark examiner is whether the applied-for-name has any foreign equivalents and if the name is phonetically similar to another name. The class of goods/services is another factor considered. There are many other factors.

2. Another person out there goes by the name "Elektronik Produce". We are a band that performs and also produces music. The other person, it appears, only produces music. Although we were first they appear to have a larger google search footprint with the top 2 search results by working with a somewhat known named artist. Albums released with the their name as producer credits appear to be mixtapes (available for free) and not online retail with major companies. Results for the other guy go as far back as 2014. We are most likely first to use the name having performed some songs in 2005 and establishing social media identity and content for streaming since 2006. Will this be a problem?
I see a problem with your use of Elektronik Produce if there is another person who uses the name Elektronik Produce, especially if the other person is in the music field.

Here are MAYBE some good things we have going for us:
- Domain name www.elektronikproduce.com since 2010-2011
- One album with the band name "Elektronik Produce" registered with copyright.gov filed in 2011, however the songs were made in 2005. Current search results yield no other copyrights registered under the name Elektronik Produce.
- YouTube music video with our name on the video uploaded September of 2007
- Although we've been distributing music and providing services for years, we finally have songs for sale through major online retailers including iTunes this week.
- YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr and most known social media sites have been secured with custom url /elektronikproduce attached e.g. "www.youtube.com/elektronikproduce"
You are right that those are some good things that favor you.

3. If I am able to register, at minimum what goods and classes should I cover? What would be acceptable specimens to submit for Section1(a) considering we do not have a physical cd to sell other than sharpied burned discs and online music content available for stream and download? To be clear, we have not made money yet. Would Section1(b) be a better plan? I would just like to get the ball rolling for peace of mind and with minimal chance of rejection. Most of what we do are under class 041 and 009 since we perform music, record mix & master music, distribute free music and recently starting to sell. At minimum I'd like to protect the band name.
These questions should be addressed by an attorney in your area. We cannot help you make any specific legal decision. That goes beyond the scope of this forum. There is a wealth of information on the USPTO site and, if you plan on filing electronically, there is less chance for error because the system walks you through the process. See http://www.uspto.gov/teas/index.html

I have about $700 to invest for trademarking. Anyways, I appreciate all the help. I know it will be hard to cover everything and there's probably all sorts of things going against me without having a paid lawyer to handle it all. Just looking at what I got ahead of me and possible solutions.
Because filing for a trademark is not cheap ($325 to $375 per class depending on how you file), your best investment prior to filing will be a trademark attorney local to you. You can do most of the footwork and have an IP professional simply review a draft of your application prior to filling in and filing your final application. The attorney can check for errors or omissions to better ensure your trademark application meets all requirements and will not be denied by the trademark examiner for that reason. This can save you some money.

Good luck.
 

Electronik

Junior Member
Thanks Quincy! I was afraid, it wouldn't be so easy. At least I know there are some good things going for me. Appreciate the help.
 

quincy

Senior Member
Thanks Quincy! I was afraid, it wouldn't be so easy. At least I know there are some good things going for me. Appreciate the help.
You're welcome, Electronik. Thanks for the thanks.

Following is a link to the Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure, with the 2016 Manual available in both PDF and HTML formats. You might find it useful (or you could find it incredibly boring :)).

http://www.uspto.gov/trademark/guides-and-manuals/tmep-archives

Good luck with your band and its music.
 

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