Various services may contact you offering to “protect” or “register” your trademark for a fee ranging from $400-$2,000. These companies give the impression of being related to a governmental trademark organization and imply that they can facilitate registration or protection of your mark. Many of such organizations will provide an invoice hoping that an unsuspecting trademark owner will pay the invoiced amount.

We do not recommend responding to these offers. Registration with a nongovernmental database offers no legal protection. These are private companies soliciting questionable trademark “watching” or “registration” services from trademark owners. Should you receive any such invoices, either simply discard them or discuss them with your Dentons contact. Companies known to send such questionable offers include:

• Company for Publication and Information Anstalt
• Globus Edition S.L. of Austria
• Institut of Commerce for Industry, Trade Commerce
• International Patent & Trademark Organization
• IP Save
• Trademark Guide on the Internet
• Trademark Safeguard
• United States Trademark Protection Agency
• World Organization for Trademarks

 For more information regarding unsolicited requests for payment of fees click here.