Business names, company names, domain names and trade marks

Different parts of your corporate identity providing different rights

Registering the business name ‘My Trade Mark’, the company name ‘My Trade Mark Pty Ltd’ and the domain name ‘www.MyTradeMark.com.au’ does not give you the right to stop others branding their goods and services with ‘My Trade Mark’. That is the purpose of trade mark registration.

The registration of business names and company names protects the general public, not you. The public can use the ASIC Register to find out who really owns and runs the business and/or company.

Nobody owns their domain name; they own a licence to use it as an address, just like a PO box at the post office.

The registration of business names, company names, domain names and trade marks occurs on separate and unrelated registers that are not officially cross-checked against each other.

It’s advisable to check all of these registers before proceeding with a new trade mark. We can assist with these checks.