NAMM Members Learn to Protect Their Brands at IP Academy

In March, a dozen music products professionals from around the country attended a customized training session at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) headquarters, where they learned how to protect their intellectual property, brands and trademarks.

To coincide with the association’s annual Fly-In for Music Education Advocacy on Capitol Hill, NAMM also offered Members the opportunity to attend a training on how music products companies can protect their intellectual property at the USPTO’s offices in Alexandria, Virginia, just outside of Washington D.C.

The IP Academy featured sessions addressing the following topics:

The top mistakes businesses are making in intellectual property

• Ways to obtain trademark, copyright and/or patent protection, here and abroad
• An update on what the USPTO China Team is doing about “trademark squatting”
• What the U.S. government is doing to address counterfeiting and piracy
• How NAMM Members can better protect their interests at trade shows, including those held in China

Attendees walked away from the full-day training session impressed by the comprehensive nature of the course and how much they learned that could be applied immediately to their businesses. “It was a real eye-opener,” said Fred Daniels of The Freddy, LLC. “Going to this will probably save me millions of dollars––just knowing how China works and what to do to protect myself before going there. It left me with a clear idea of what the playing field is.”

Jeff Smith of J. L. Smith Company agreed. “The NAMM/USPTO IP Academy was exceptional. While my primary interest was in the area of international trademark issues, I found the discussion on copyrights and patents just as captivating. Each of the speakers was absolutely top-drawer, and the day was beautifully orchestrated. A highlight for me was Tom Moga's incredibly thorough look into patents in China from an insider's perspective. I was also greatly impressed to learn of the unique relationship between NAMM and the USPTO. Count me in next time!”

To learn more about protecting your company’s brand, visit www.uspto.gov or e-mail maryl@namm.org to participate in NAMM’s IP Task Force and receive updates about about future intellectual property training opportunities.