Republic Act 7875 Implementing Rules and Regulations

The law requires that all business establishments must enrol their employees with Philhealth. To know more about this law, you can read the Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act No. 7875 from the Philhealth website.

Philhealth Vision: Bawat Pilipino dapat miyembro. Bawat miyembro ay protektado. Kalusugan natin sigurado.

Just What Are You Allowed or Not Allowed To Trademark?

Using trademarks to protect the intellectual property of your business is a smart move. However, before you start trying to prevent all of your competitors from using any word or image that you’ve ever looked at, it would be a good idea to find out what you can and can’t trademark. There are a number of things, or “marks”, that can be protected by trademark.

Before we go any further I should mention that this is not legal advice and you should always speak with an attorney before filing for trademarks or patents. Filing a trademark isn’t as straightforward as say for example, forming an LLC, and a trademark attorney can save you from wasted time and money.

What Can Be Trademarked?

A trademark’s purpose is to protect things that identify a business in the marketplace such as a word, phrase, symbol or design that “identifies and distinguishes the goods or services of one person or company from those of others.” Your logo, brand name, tagline, or any other similar branding elements are protected.

What Are the Easiest Marks to Trademark?

You must file an application to have your mark registered and there is no guarantee that it will be accepted, even if it appears to meet the basic criteria. Some marks are more likely to be accepted than others. Below are the marks that are most likely to be successfully trademarked.

Fanciful Marks

Marks that you’ve created originally or coined for the sole purpose of identifying your business or brand are referred to as fanciful marks. Well-known examples include Exxon, Kodak, Febreze, and Xerox. Fanciful marks are generally the easiest to protect. The only downside is that they can require a larger investment to increase awareness and establish a connection between the unique name and the brand promise it represents.

Arbitrary Marks

In the case of an arbitrary name, a common word is used for a brand or product that is unrelated. Arbitrary names are excellent for trademarks and are usually easy to protect. Some examples you are likely familiar with include Apple for a computer company, Coach for purses, Puma for athletic apparel, Lotus for software, and Jockey for underwear.

Suggestive Marks

Suggestive marks are generally unique and suggest a mental association between the name and the features or benefits of the product or service that the name represents. Suggestive marks are much more common than fanciful or arbitrary marks, despite not being quite as strong. The reason is that suggestive marks usually grant a marketing advantage of tying a mark to the product in a customer’s mind. Suggestive marks are often confused with descriptive marks, but the key difference is that suggestive marks require a bit of thought and creativity to link the name with the product or service, while descriptive marks do not require any imagination. As you can probably guess, this is a highly disputed area of trademark law.

Notable examples of suggestive marks include Microsoft for computer software, Sharpie for markers, Zappos for an online store, or Flickr for a photo sharing website.

What Can’t Be Trademarked?

While trademarks do cover a wide range of things, they still have their limitations. You can’t trademark generic names. A car manufacturer could not trademark the word “car” or “trunk” because those two words are very common in their industry. You (obviously) can’t trademark anything that’s already been registered by someone else. You also can’t trademark anything that might cause confusion between you and another business.

What Are the Hardest Marks to Trademark?

While there is a slight chance that you will be able to trademark one of the following marks, if you can prove that it is unique enough, the odds are not in your favor. Below are the most difficult marks to trademark from most likely to least likely.

Descriptive Marks

Choosing a company name that describes a certain feature of the product or service is considered descriptive and cannot be trademarked. An example would be “Garden Supply Store,” because it only describes what the store sells. In addition, changing the spelling of a common descriptive phrase, such as “Karpet Klean” will not likely be approved either. Small changes in spelling are not enough.

Geographically Descriptive Marks

Business names that include the geographic location of where the business operates are difficult to trademark. Examples such as “Houston Pest Control” or “Atlanta Auto Repair” would be very likely not be approved.

Surname Marks

Names that are primarily used as surnames are very difficult to trademark. Examples would be “Smith’s Lawn Care” or “Thompson’s Bakery.” The only way you would have a chance would be to invest so heavily in marketing that the names became established enough in the marketplace to have a secondary meaning in consumers’ minds as more than just a surname.

Generic Names

If your brand name could be used to describe an entire industry or category it is too generic to be trademarked. Examples would be “Speedy Car Wash” or “Dallas Loans.”

Deceptive Marks

Names that attempt to mislead or deceive consumers by inaccurately describing certain benefits or features of the product/service cannot be trademarked. For example, a company can’t use a phrase suggesting that the products are made in America if their products are manufactured in China.