Given their constant presence in our daily lives, the symbols ® and TM are very familiar to most of us. But what do they actually mean? And as a business owner, how do you know when to use them?
Both symbols refer to U.S. federal protection granted to the logo or phrase. The United States Patent and Trademark Office catalogues all registrations and applications in its database and reviews the database for potentially confusing marks when processing new applications. Registering your mark through their office is the best way to defend your brand from competitors.

Businesses, beware! Copyright infringement can happen anywhere, even on the biggest sports stage: the 2022 Beijing Olympics. Two U.S. Olympic figure skaters, Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier, were sued last week for copyright infringement by the musical artist, Heavy Young Heathens, for using their song without permission. The lawsuit also names as defendants Comcast Corporation, NBCUniversal Media, LLC, Peacock, USA Network, and U.S. Figure Skating. The lawsuit was filed in California for the skaters’ use of the song, “House of the Rising Sun,” which the musicians allege was used without their permission for the skaters’ short program in the Olympics. Heavy Young Heathens state they have not received any payment for use of the song, causing them “substantial, immediate, and irreparable injury.” Interestingly, one of the damages alleged was that the song’s use in figure skating has forever linked it to that sport, which limits its future use.

The rapid spread of interest in non-fungible tokens (“NFTs”) has created a billion-dollar industry as buyers bid to own the latest digital artwork and sellers cash in on the craze. However, for many buyers and sellers the intellectual property laws implicated by NFTs go unnoticed which could have costly repercussions.