Is Trademark Registration Expensive?
Trademark registration involves certain costs. Many people may feel that trademark registration is expensive.
However, the necessity and value of trademark registration might not be fully understood.
Fling a trademark application might be regarded as a simple procedure that merely involves preparing and submitting documents.
How Much Does Trademark Registration Cost?
For example, the costs of filing an application for one trademark in one class and obtaining a trademark right for 10 years are as follows:
Item and Amount
Filing fee payable to the Japan Patent Office (JPO) : JPY 12,000
Registration fee payable to the JPO (10 years)： JPY 32,900
Professional fees charged by an IP firm (filing and registration)： JPY 60,000–100,000
Total (including tax): JPY 110,900–154,900
＊The professional fees are approximate amounts excluding tax. The total includes 10% Japanese consumption tax on the professional fees. Fees for responding to Office Actions, preliminary trademark searches, and other additional procedures are not included.
A trademark right is valid for 10 years from the date of registration. The right can be maintained beyond this period by completing renewal procedures.
If the total cost for 10 years is calculated on a monthly basis (including tax), it amounts to:
Approximately JPY 925–1,291 per month
Is this really expensive when considering that it protects your company's valuable name or logo for 10 years?
A Trademark Is a Valuable Asset That Protects a Company's Goodwill
A company's logo is not merely a decoration on its business cards.
Over many years of business activities, a logo accumulates the trust and reputation that customers associate with the company. In trademark law, this is expressed by saying that goodwill becomes embodied in a trademark.
Particularly in the service industry, a company name or store name itself can become an important trademark representing customers' trust.
Can you think of any logos or product names that immediately come to mind when you think of your favorite products or services? For example, the logo of your favorite car manufacturer or the name of a confectionery shop you like?
What would happen if, one day, you suddenly had to change the logo, company name, or store name that you had been using for years?
The consequences might go far beyond the costs of changing signs and websites. Such a change could also affect the goodwill and reputation that your business has built up over time.
Trademark registration is important not only for large corporations, but especially for small and medium-sized enterprises that operate with limited business resources.
Is Filing a Trademark Application Really That Simple?
When filing a trademark application, it is necessary not only to select a name or logo but also to properly specify the "goods" and "services" for which the trademark will be used.
The scope of trademark protection is determined by these specifications.
For example, in the case of a confectionery shop, specifying "confectionery" as goods is not the same as specifying the retail service of "retail or wholesale services for confectionery."
Similarly, providing meals at a restaurant and selling boxed meals for takeaway involve different goods or services that need to be considered.
If a trademark application is filed without carefully examining the actual business activities, the resulting registration may not adequately protect the business that the applicant originally intended to protect.
Furthermore, conducting searches for earlier trademarks and selecting appropriate goods and services while considering future business expansion require specialized knowledge and experience.
Trademark Registration Is an Investment in the Future
Trademark registration is not simply a procedure for registering a name or logo.
It is an investment in protecting the goodwill that your business has built up and enabling you to continue your business with greater confidence.
When you consider that trademark registration can protect your valuable trademark for 10 years, perhaps your view of its cost will change.
