The Kodak logo, for instance, is a trademark. So is the Kleenex brand name. The name ???Novell Online
Training Provider??? is a service mark of the Novell Corporation.
Trademarks are granted by the government, and they can have a very long life. A trademark granted by the
US Patent and Trademark Office has a term of 10 years, and it can be renewed indefinitely for 10 year terms.
The application is relatively inexpensive, and can cost as little as a few hundred dollars. Renewals also carry
a fee, and with each renewal the owner must submit an affidavit of use, attesting to the owner??™s ongoing use of
the trademark.
A company can lose its exclusive right to use a trademark if the term used becomes part of the language.
This is called trademark genericide. In Britain, the word ???hoover??? has come to be the common word for vacuum
cleaner, so Hoover is no longer a registered trademark in Britain (however, Hoover remains a trademark in
the US). Today the trademarks Xerox and Band Aid are in danger of genericide, and you will perhaps see
advertisements for ???Xerox copies??? and ???Band Aid brand strips,??? which are attempts by the companies to
preserve their trademarks.
Trade Secrets
Of more importance to software creators are the other three approaches to protecting intellectual property.
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