Trademarks and franchising go hand in hand. A fundamental legal privilege that you will grant to your franchisees when you franchise your firm is the license and permission to use your trademarks. Franchisees will copy your business concept and use your trademarks in the process. As a franchisor, you will teach your franchisees how to use and not use your trademarks, and it is your responsibility to ensure that your trademarks are registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) and protected from infringement uses by competitors. Because trademarks are so crucial to franchise systems, FDD Item 13 is dedicated to providing prospective franchisees with information about your trademarks.
A trademark can be the name of your business, a symbol depicting the business offerings, or both of them combined together. Franchisees mostly use it to identify the business, the goods they sell, and the services they provide. A trademark may also include slogans that are used in the identification of the business. It is a unique intellectual property of the business that distinguishes the franchise from its competitors and rivals. However, just because your firm has a trademark does not mean you own it or that it is legally protected. A trademark has two sources of ownership and legal rights. It is critical that you, as franchise owners, comprehend and apply this principle. A common-law trademark is created by your actual use of a trademark and the rights that come with it. The second approach is to register your trademark with the USPTO and get the rights that come with it, which is referred to as a federally registered trademark. Trademark rights obtained through federal registration are far more powerful than trademark rights obtained through common law usage.
Franchise news and information are available in abundance, and you can create a Top Business Franchise Magazine in the fraternity. Franchise owners nowadays need a lot of assistance regarding the laws and regulations of running a franchise. You can help the cause by being among the top Business Franchise Magazines in the country.
As to the flexibility of a franchise business opportunities, unlike a franchise opportunity which maintains tight controls and requires specific procedures to follow, business opportunities generally don’t have as many rules and guidelines.
So if you fancy yourself as being an “entrepreneur” in the purest sense of the word, you should take some time and explore business opportunities as a way to be your own boss.
