Can You Register Your Domain Name As A Trademark? Should You Seek Trademark Protection?

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	Can You Register Your Domain Name As A Trademark?

Generally speaking, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ("PTO") will allow you to register your Internet domain name as a trademark if it is used to identify and distinguish your goods or services from the goods or services of others, and to indicate the source of your goods or services.

What Does That Mean?
Well, one key to a trademark is that the trademark is more than a name: it is used by consumers to identify the source of the goods or services identified by the trademark. Here is rule-of-thumb guidance, drawn from the PTO's statements and from legal cases on trademark rights:

1. The PTO takes the position that, in order to register an Internet domain name, the applicant must offer services via the Internet. A trademark must actually be used in commerce, so the name to be protected must serve to aid consumers in identifying a good or service.

2. The name must be more than a mere address or locating aid, like a phone number. A trademark must actually identify the services for which registration is requested, and must serve to identify the source of those services.

What's In a Name?
Sometimes, everything. Just ask AT&T! 
> see article: Are Your Branding Efforts Paying Off?
Your market identity and resulting position may be one key "driver" to your profits. No doubt, trademark protection of domain names will continue to spark disputes and receive increasing legal attention for years, as use of the Internet in marketing grows. 

The term "Internet" is itself the subject of a pending legal dispute. (For this reason, the PTO warns, "Internet" should not currently be used to identify goods or services connected with a global information network when applying for trademark protection.)

A domain name might be chosen on a whim, but the value of that name, in dollars and cents, will grow with your business or or maybe even your lack of business. Furniture.com, which has long since seen their IPO funds and assets fall prey to Chapter 11, still contends their domain name is worth a considerable amount of money. In an effort to justify that contention, they continue to monitor and large numbers of visitors to their site on a daily basis.

Whether through foresight or hindsight, the name you choose will have legal and business implications. Network Solutions, Inc., which assigns domain names, has developed an extensive policy designed to discourage trademark infringement in name selection, and to protect itself from complicity in any infringement by it s applicants. In addition to the guidelines above, consider the following:

1. Can you develop or choose a name that will serve as a service mark or trademark (allowing you to obtain the protection of registration)? You may have no competition today, but competitors come with success. Trademark protection may help protect you from competition.

2. Can your existing trademark or trade name be used or adapted as a domain name? Such use may strengthen your market identity, whether your domain name is registered as a trademark or not, and may held discourage others from encroaching on your name.

3. Is it possible that selecting a name distinct from your existing trademark will help you protect your existing trademark? Remember: whether or not you can register a variation on your current name as a domain name, someone else may be encroaching on your trademark if they use a variation as their domain name.

Conclusion:
Many companies both large and small have embarked on their Internet endeavors with little concern for the use or misuse of trade names. Unfortunately these companies are paying dearly for their shortsightedness. Today most companies spend a great deal of time and money working to protect the trade value of their names. 

Your name is an asset that grows with you. You should chose your domain name, and your strategy for protecting that name, as carefully as you make your other business and legal decisions. 

No one can know the future, which may bring many changes in opportunity and strategy. You must carefully consider options in choosing a domain name, and choose a strategy that you feel will best serve your business interests now, and into the future.