Trademark protections are good for small businesses – protects investment and solves brand loyalty

Trademark law also functions to protect trademark producers. The law protects the trademark owners’ rightful use from appropriation by others. The law bans pirating use by others who may create and sell products or market services of sub-standard quality. Protection promotes and rewards investment by preserving the value of marks by prohibiting others from using the mark. By prohibiting others from free-loading off of the good-will a mark has established producers and owners are rewarded for investing time, effort, and money in producing and developing new brands with corresponding new products. Thus, producers and owners are rewarded for creation and use by receiving the protection the law affords them in exchange. Trademark owners are also rewarded with continued patronage and brand loyalty, when they have made efficient use of their marks. As noted above, trademarks reduce consumer search costs, thereby increasing the ability and perhaps frequency of repeat purchasers. The use in commerce requirement is a necessary tradeoff for these benefits to accrue to the mark owner. In theory, if they do not use the marks in commerce they will not benefit financially from the trademark registration. Thus, it is always in their best interest to market and promote their mark as much as possible and to create quality goods associated with the mark in order to increase sales and brand loyalty.