Do I need a patent, copyright or trademark when I market a t shirt with a picture and a saying?
By Yahoo User • Category: Do I Need It To Trademark?I am going to produce a t shirt with a picture and an original saying on it something similar to saying God’s Pods if I was selling I pods, or Moses’ hoses if I was selling garden hoses. It’s going to be original but not the two examples I gave. I am trying to find out how to protect myself from copycats.
Copyright is for printed material
“Your work is under copyright protection the moment it is created and fixed in a tangible form that it is perceptible either directly or with the aid of a machine or device. “However…”Registration is recommended for a number of reasons. Many choose to register their works because they wish to have the facts of their copyright on the public record and have a certificate of registration. Registered works may be eligible for statutory damages and attorney’s fees in successful litigation. Finally, if registration occurs within 5 years of publication, it is considered prima facie evidence in a court of law.”You must also submit your registration before infringement occurs to receive statutory damages. Exception: 90 days from creation (not publication). You should therefore batch all work produced quarterly.If you want full resolution options you should submit a picture of each shirt produced, a completed form USCO Form VA (for Visual Arts), and a fee of $45.00. You can batch file any number of designs at once on the same form for the same fee at the same time.You may also wish to register a trademark for the items to receive additional protection. I think it costs about $150 per item, but the copyright registration should be sufficient in most cases.