When starting a business, it’s normal to ask yourself – “Do I need to copyright my company name?.” The answer to that question is a resounding no. Why? Let’s start by understanding the concept of copyright and learn a bit about how copyright benefits a business.
What is copyright?
Copyright is a way to protect your intellectual property when they are original works. Depending on the license, it gives others the right to copy your content—either free or for a price. Copyright is very different from trademarking and protects your original ideas in literary, performing, and visual arts, along with digital content and architectural works.
While many people think that they can copyright company names, it is not true. Trademarking is the way to protect your company’s name. As soon as you publish the company name, you can claim ownership of the name under common law. This means filing a trademark is not really necessary but is advised to protect your business. Trademarks help you provide a legal claim of nationwide ownership, giving you and only you the right to use the name and the logo.
Now that we’ve cleared out why you cannot copyright the company name, let’s understand why it’s important to copyright the company’s work to protect its brand.
Why should your company be copyright protected?